OSHA Inspection: AGFEED USA, LLC

Issued

Jun 11, 2013

Abate by

Aug 15, 2013

Penalty

Initial $4,900 · Current $4,900

General-duty citation text

North Carolina General Statue 95-129(1) of the Occupational Safety and
Health Act of North Carolina:  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
fire and delayed egress hazards.
a)Sow Farm -  where the corridor exits did not have adequate stairs or
stair platforms with
handrails, exit doors were not side-hinged or pivoted-swinging type, exit
doors required more
than one motion to open, horizontal sliding doors required a great amount
of force to open, and
the height of the horizontal sliding doors did not accommodate the height
of employees,
exposing employees to fire and delayed egress hazards.
b)Sow Farm - where the Farrow Rooms did not have two adequate means of
egress, exits along
the corridor were more than 75 feet, exit directional signs were not
posted in the corridor, two
doors in the GDU area were blocked, exposing employees to fire and delayed
egress hazards.
c)Sow Farm - where the fire extinguishers along the main corridor were
mounted more than 4 feet
from the floor, wire fencing blocked the bottom portions of the fire
extinguishers, and multiple
fire extinguishers contained corroded bases, exposing employees to fire
and delayed egress
hazards.
d)Sow Farm, main corridor - where cooling pads (mechanically corrugated,
cellulose cooling
cells) were installed on an interior wall, holes were observed in the wall
boards, wood panels
were installed, and exposed insulation was observed all serving as sources
to fuel the fire along
the exit path, exposing employees to fire and delayed egress hazards. The
fire rating of the
wood panels and cooling pads was unknown.
References:NFPA 10, Standard for Portable Fire Extinguishers, 2013
edition, Chapters 1- Administrative
and 6- Installation of Portable Fire Extinguishers.
NFPA 101, Life Safety Code,2012 edition, Chapters: 1- Administration, 4-
General, 7- Means
of Egress, 10- Interior Finish, Contents and Furnishings, 40- Industrial
Occupancy, and 42-
Storage Occupancy.
NFPA 150, Standard on Fire & Life Safety In Animal Housing, 2013 edition,
Chapters: 1-
Administration, 8- Means of Egress Requirement, and 10- Interior Finishes,
Contents and
Furnishings.
AgFeed USA, LLC Safety Manual Hog Operations, May 1, 2012, Chapter 7 Fire
Prevention.
Feasible and acceptable abatement methods to correct these hazards:
Evaluate the Sow Barn to ensure the exits, exit paths and discharge areas
meet the requirements of NFPA, 101,
Life Safety Code,2012 edition and NFPA 150, Standard on Fire & Life Safety
In Animal Housing, 2013
edition, i.e., do not use pig chutes as exits for employees, install full
size and side hinged doors in the farrow
rooms to use as exits, ensure all doors can be opened with one quick
motion, install panic bars to allow doors to
be easily opened from the inside but locked from the outside, install
platforms with steps and handrails at exits,
install illuminated exit directional signs, and provide exit doors every
75 feet.
Verify the wood panels and cooling pads meet the requirements of  NFPA
101, Life Safety Code,2012 edition,
Chapter 10- Interior Finish, Contents and Furnishings, cover the exposed
insulation, and ensure there are no
holes in the walls to allow air to reach and feed a fire.
Remove the wire fencing around the bottom of the fire extinguishers and
mount all fire extinguishers where theyare accessible to the average
height employee.  The top of the fire extinguisher shall not be more than
5 feet
from the floor.  Contact Williamston Fire Extinguisher Service to evaluate
and if needed, replace the corroded
fire extinguishers.

Issued

Jun 5, 2013

Abate by

Jul 22, 2013