OSHA Inspection: SOUTHWEST STEEL CASTING COMPANY

Issued

Jan 13, 1998

Abate by

Mar 3, 1998

Penalty

Initial $4,500

General-duty citation text

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970:  The
employer did not
furnish employment and a place 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:
Employees working in and near the car bottom heat treat furnace, unit #2,
were exposed to the
recognized hazard of being "struck by" or "caught in" the car or furnace
as it traveled into and
out of the furnace.  The employer did not take adequate measures to
control employee(s)
exposure, in that:
When moving the car bottom into an out of the furnace all personnel were
not clear of
the car and the furnace.
The potential for being "struck by" or "caught in" was demonstrated by the
following instance:
On or about October 19, 1997 a heat treat employee was trapped inside heat
treat unit
#2 when the car bottom was loaded into the unit.  The employee died as a
result of
second and third degree thermal burns.
Recognized and feasible means of abatement to correct this hazard include;
but are not limited
to:
Installation of an audible device and visual warning signal coupled with a
timed delay
start up of the car bottom as required by the American National Standards
Institute
(ANSI) standard B20.1 (Safety Standards for Conveyors and Related
Equipment), 1993
Edition with particular attention to Chapter 5 (General Safety Standards),
section 5.11
(Controls), section 5.11.2 (Control Station), paragraph (b) and paragraph
(b)(1).  The
audible alarm shall be clearly heard by all personnel in the immediate
area.  The visual
warning signal shall be seen by all personnel in the immediate area.