OSHA Inspection: ASSOCIATED MARINE EQUIPMENT

Issued

Dec 7, 2009

Abate by

Dec 15, 2009

Penalty

Initial $3,000 · Current $3,000

General-duty citation text

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970:  The
employer did not
furnish to each of his employees a place of employment which was free from
recognized hazards
that were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to
employees in that
employees were exposed to the hazard of being struck by a crane boom
during disassembly.
On or about 11/17/2009 three employees were disassembling a Bucyrus-Erie
Model 30B
Truck Crane with a 80 foot boom. The boom was lowered to approximately 4
feet above
the ground with no means of support under the boom sections to prevent it
from falling
when the retaining pins were removed. This exposed the employees to the
hazard of
being struck by the falling sections of the crane boom.
Among other methods, a feasible and acceptable abatement method to correct
this hazard
would be to block the sections of the boom to prevent it from falling as
specified
by the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) B30.5 - 1968. Additionally
employees should not be allowed to position themselves under the boom when
removing
the retaining pins.
DISCLAIMERS:
1) You are not limited to the abatement methods suggested above.
2) The methods explained are general and may not be effective in all cases.
3) The employer is responsible for selecting and carrying out an
appropriate method.