OSHA Inspection: IPS CORPORATION INC.

Issued

May 12, 2011

Abate by

May 17, 2011

Penalty

Initial $6,300 · Current $4,725 Reduced

General-duty citation text

North Carolina General Statute 95-129(1) of the Occupational Safety and
Health Act of North Carolina:  The
employer did not furnish each of his employees conditions of employment
and a place of employment 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)At facility- in the mixing room, mixer No. 10, where on or about March
17, 2011, an
employee was exposed to a flash fire while preparing a batch. The employee
was dumping 30
pounds of plexi glass VS-100 (pellets) into a vessel that contained
flammable liquids. The
employee was using a plastic pail that was not bonded to the vessel and
the employee was not
being grounded.
Reference: NFPA 77, Recommended Practice on Static Electricity, 2007
edition, paragraphs 9.11.1.6 and
9.11.2: Powders should not be emptied from a non-conductive container in
the
presence of a flammable
atmosphere. Chapter 9.11.6 Personnel in the vicinity of openings of
vessels that contain flammable liquids
should be grounded.
Feasible and acceptable abatement methods to correct this hazard are to
require employees to ground themselves
by using wrist straps and the use of metal pails to dump powders and
solids that can be bonded to the vessels to
prevent electrostatic ignitions of fires and explosions and to provide
hands on training to ensure employees
attain the proper understanding of how to apply bonding and grounding
devices to eliminate the possibility of an
electrostatic discharge when handling flammables.ic

Issued

May 12, 2011

Abate by

May 17, 2011

Penalty

Initial $4,900 · Current $3,675 Reduced