OSHA Inspection: ANOMATIC CORPORATION

Issued

Dec 22, 1989

Abate by

Sep 14, 1992

Penalty

Initial $900 · Current $500 Reduced

General-duty citation text

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970:  The
employer did not furnish employment of employment which were free from
recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death or serious
physical harm to employees in that employees were exposed to:
a.  On the anodizing lines #1, #2, #3, and #5 workers suffered repeti-
tive motion-related disorders of the fingers, hands, and wrists (incl-
uding strains, tendonitic, tenosynovitis, and carpal tunnel syndrome)
when they:
-----Pushed cosmetic caps and other small aluminum parts onto holder
springs attached to the moving conveyor belts.
-----Pulled cosmetic caps and other small aluminum parts onto holder-
springs attached to the moving conveyor belts.
There was a history of workers having hand cuts and burns while handl-
ing parts.  The workers were frequently observed using gloves to protect
their hands.
There was a history of the cap and parts inserter (racker) and remover
(take-off) workers suffering injuries related to slips, trips, and falls
from the unguarded edges of the platforms that they stood on.
There was a history of workers suffering from upper back, neck, and
shoulder strains.  Workers were observed to stand with bent truck, neck,
and extended arms for long periods of time which produced static muscle-
related strains.
The work production rates are demanding of workers intense efforts, and
overtime work periods are common.
The hazards and stresses leading to ergonomic stress-related injuries
can be largely reduced by a program including, but not limited to:
-----Provide removeable holder-spring sets that can be clipped onto the
anodizer conveyor.
-----Provide inspection and replacement of individual defective holder
springs when they are observed to be:  Improperly formed and/or bent,
and have sharp edges.
-----The metal holder-springs presently being used require hand and
finger forces that, while they vary, can be high.  Study alternate
means of attaching caps and parts that meet the conditions of:
--mimimum force needed to insert and remove caps and parts.
--Assured movement of caps and parts as they are moved through the
anodizing machine.  Lowered workers hand and finger forces can be
achieved by making the holder-spring forces lighter.  It might be
possible to use a different attachment means, based upon using
vacuum clamping or based upon pushing the parts over the small
brush ends.
-----Gloves reduce the hands' effectiveness when pushing on and pulling
off caps and parts, resulting in the workers' need to use greater hand
force to accomplish the same task(s).  Provide a work process that
allow workers to perform their tasks while not using gloves.
-----Provide seated work stations for workers performing puch-on and
pull-off of caps and parts from their holder-spring sets.
--provide easily-adjustable tables with one-inch height variation to
accomodate different height workers.
--Provide fixtures on the tables that will allow the snap attachment
of a holder-spring set.
--provide a ready supply of caps/parts that are immediately handy to
the workers at their individual work stations.
--provide height-adjustable, ergonomically and posturally correct
chairs to allow the workers to perform their tasks with their bodies
and necks in erect positions and without static-muscle loading.
--Provide rounded and/or padded edges on the work tables to allow
workers to support part of their arm weight while performing push-on
and pull-off of parts and caps.
--Provide foot rests under the work tables that allow minimum static
stress strain of the workers legs and feet.
-----Provide a conveyor or mover that will allow transport of spring-
holder sets, with parts and/or caps, between the conveyor line and the
work tables.
-----Allow heated parts to cool before workers pull them from the spring
holder sets, thereby removing the need for workers wearing gloves to
protect their hands from burns.
-----Establish quality control to assure that parts and caps, when they
must be handled by workers, do not have cutting edges, sharp silvers,
and/or chemical residues, thereby removing the need for workers wearing
gloves to protect hands from cuts and chemical exposures.
-----With the assistance of the plant medical doctor and therapist,
establish a worker-wellness program that includes:
--make workers aware of repetitive motion hazards and their
avoidance.
--establish a worker exercise program that allows workers to stretch
and loosen muscles.  Require that workers participate in the program
that may involve five minutes at the job start, halfway through the
first four hours, and halfway through the second four hours.
-----With the assistance of the plant medical doctor and therapist,
establish a worker-hardening program for new workers, and for those
workers who are returning after suffering injuries/illnesses that are
related to repetitive motion work.  Monitor the workers progress to
assure that they are healthy, and they perform assigned work using the
employers assigned tools, fixtures, and procedures that minimize hand
forces.