OSHA Inspection: EAGLE TOOL GROUP

Issued

Jul 8, 2008

Abate by

Aug 22, 2008

Penalty

Initial $1,500

General-duty citation text

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970:  The
employer did not
furnish employmnent 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 an exploding abrasive wheel:
(a)  On or about May 27, 2008 in the Machine Shop, an employee was
deburring
"C" clamps when the twenty-four inch abrasive wheel exploded.  The
unidentified
floor stand grinder did not have a self-closing guard.
AMONG OTHER METHODS, ONE FEASIBLE AND ACCEPTABLE METHOD TO
CORRECT THIS HAZARD WOULD BE TO FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS IN ANSI B7.1-
2000,SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE USE, CARE AND PROTECTION OF
ABRASIVE WHEELS, SECTION 4.3.3.1.1, WHICH STATES AS FOLLOWS:
4.3.3.1.1 Self-closing guard
In order to protect all personnel who are in the plane of rotation of the
grinding wheel, all floor
stand grinders designed to be used with 24" diameter wheels or larger,
shall be equipped with
a guard which closes automatically at the occurance of a wheel breakage.
Other guard designs
which provide equivalent protection to the personnel in the plane of
rotation of the wheel may
be used.
EXPLAINATION
E 4.3.3.1.1 Self-closing guard
The engineering concept of the self-closing guard is very simple to
understand.  In the event of
a wheel breakage, the wheel pieces fly tangentially outward.  They strike,
at an angle, one or
more paddle-like surfaces which are fixed to a movable gate located within
the primary guard.
The kinetic energy of the wheel is transferred to this gate, causing it to
instantly swing shut so
as to prevent broken pieces from escaping from inside the primary machine
guard.  High speed
photography shows the effectiveness of this guard design.  When a wheel
breakage
occurs, the
piece of wheel that actually leaves the opening of the guard was not the
piece facing the operator
at the instantaneous moment of breakage.  The piece was one well within
the guard, but headed
for the guard opening due to tangential rotational forces imparted to it
just prior to breakage.

Issued

Jul 8, 2008

Abate by

Aug 22, 2008

Penalty

Initial $1,500