OSHA Inspection: WINTER EQUIPMENT COMPANY INC.

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-07-29 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $2800.00 · Current $2170.00 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.157(g)(2): The educational program to familiarize employees with the general principles of fire extinguisher use and the hazards involved with incipient stage fire fighting was not provided to all employees upon initial employment, and at least annually thereafter:    The last fire extinguisher training was provided for employees in 2013; training was not provided in 2014 or 2015 by the day of the inspection.     Although portable fire extinguishers were available for employee use, neither initial, nor annual retraining was provided.       Note:  Employer may exercise one of the following options.       1.  Provide portable fire extinguishers as specified in 29 CFR1910.157(c)(1), meet the distribution requirements per 29 CFR1910.157(d) (75 feet to the nearest extinguisher for Class A fires and 50 feet to the nearest unit for Class B fires), and provide training and education for all employees in the use of such equipment and the hazards associated with incipient stage fire fighting as required in 29 CFR 1910.157(g). The other sections of 29 CFR also apply.       2.  Provide extinguishers as specified in 29 CFR 1910.157(c)(1),designate certain employees to be the only employees authorized to use such equipment and require all other employees to immediately evacuate upon the sounding of the fire alarm, establish this in writing in an emergency action plan as outlined in 29 CFR1910.38(a) and train/educate designated employees per 1910.157(g).Utilizing this option exempts the employer from distribution requirements of 29 CFR 1910.157(d).       3.  Establish a written fire safety policy which requires the immediate and total evacuation of employees from the workplace upon the sounding of a fire alarm signal.  This policy shall include an emergency action plan and a fire prevention plan as specified in 29CFR 1910.38(a) and (b).  Utilizing this option exempts the employer from the requirements of 29 CFR 1910.157 to include the need for providing portable fire equipment unless a specific standard requires that a portable fire extinguisher be provided (such as those requirements in 29 CFR 1910.106/107 related to use/storage of flammable/combustible liquids).  If extinguishers are provided, but not intended for employee use, 29 CFR 1910.157(e) and (f) are still applicable (inspection, maintenance, and testing of equipment).

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-09-30 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $3500.00 · Current $2730.00 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.212(a)(3)(ii): Point of operation guards were not designed and constructed as to prevent the operator from having any part of their body in the danger zone during the operating cycle:    The hydraulic bar straightener located in the welding department had unguarded pinch points between the bar and the anvils, which supported the bar, and between the bar and the ram.

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-07-04 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $4900.00 · Current $3850.00 Reduced

Hazardous substances 0689

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1026(c): Employees were exposed to an airborne concentration of chromium (VI) which exceeded 5 micrograms per cubic meter of air, as an 8-hour time-weighted average:    On 6/9/2015, an employee working at the Semi-manual welding station was exposed to hexavalent chromium at a level of  7.497 micrograms per cubic meter of air, this exposure was approximately 1.5 times the permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 5 micrograms per cubic meter of air.  This sample was collected over a 456 minute sample period, a zero increment was added for the un-sampled 24 minutes.

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-07-14 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $4900.00 · Current $0.00 Reduced

Hazardous substances 0689

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1026(f)(1): Employees were exposed to an airborne concentration of chromium (VI) which exceeded 5 micrograms per cubic meter of air,  and the employer failed to use engineering and work practice controls to reduce and maintain employee exposure to chromium (VI) to or below the PEL unless the employer can demonstrate that such controls are not feasible:    On 6/9/2015, an employee working at the  Semi-manual welding station was exposed to hexavalent chromium at a level of  7.497 micrograms per cubic meter of air this exposure was approximately 1.5 times the permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 5 micrograms per cubic meter of air.  No engineering controls were installed to reduce the exposure to levels below the PEL.    Abatement methods usually applicable in these circumstances include, but are not limited to, the following:    Installation of local exhaust ventilation systems to remove contaminant at the source.    Abatement steps:      STEP 1:  Effective respiratory protection shall be provided and used by all exposed employees as an interim protection measure and when administrative or engineering controls fail to reduce exposures to below the PEL.  In addition, an effective respiratory protection program in accordance with 29 CFR 1910.134 shall be maintained.  Abatement must be completed by ***5 days***.       STEP 2:  Submit to the Area Director a written detailed plan of abatement outlining a schedule for the implementation of engineering and/or administrative measures to control employee exposure to levels below the PEL as referenced in this citation.  This plan shall include, at a minimum, target dates for the following actions which must be consistent with the dates required by this citation.      1)  Evaluation of engineering control options.      2)  Selection of optimum control method and completion of design.      3)  Procurement, installation and operation of selected control measures.      4)  Testing and acceptance or modification/redesign of controls.      All proposed control measures shall be evaluated for each particular use by a competent Industrial Hygienist or other technically qualified person.  Thirty (30) day progress reports are required during the abatement period.  Abatement must be completed by ***30 days***.      STEP 3:  Abatement should have been completed by the implementation of feasible engineering and/or administrative controls upon verification of their effectiveness in achieving compliance.  This verification should include air monitoring results showing levels below the permissible exposure limit. Abatement must be completed by ***60 DAYS***.

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-07-14 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $4900.00 · Current $3850.00 Reduced

Hazardous substances 0689

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1026(d)(1): The employer with a workplace or work operation covered by this standard did not determine the 8-hour time-weighted average exposure for each employee exposed to chromium (VI):    Employees using welding wire which could cause exposure to hexavalent chromium were not evaluated to determine their exposures.

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-07-04 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $4900.00 · Current $0.00 Reduced

Hazardous substances 0689

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1026(g)(1)(i): The employer did not provide each employee an appropriate respirator during periods necessary to install or implement feasible engineering and work practice controls:    On 6/9/2015, an employee working at the Semi-manual welding station was exposed to hexavalent chromium at a level of  7.497 micrograms per cubic meter of air this exposure was approximately 1.5 times the permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 5 micrograms per cubic meter of air.  This employee was not provided with a respirator and required to use it, as part of a comprehensive respiratory protection program in compliance with 29 CFR 1910.134.

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-07-04 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $4900.00 · Current $3850.00 Reduced

Hazardous substances 0689

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1026(k)(1)(i): The employer did not make medical surveillance for chromium (VI) exposures available at no cost to the employees, and/or at a reasonable time and place controls:    No medical surveillance program was developed and implemented for employees who were overexposed to hexavalent chromium.

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-07-04 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $4900.00 · Current $3850.00 Reduced

Hazardous substances 0689

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1026(l)(2)(i): Prior to initial job assignment to an area where  employees were subject to hexavalent chromium exposure, the employer did not ensure  that each employee could demonstrate knowledge in the contents of 29 CFR 1910.1026,  and the purpose and description of the medical surveillance program required  by paragraph (k) of the standard:    No training was provided on the contents of the hexavalent chromium standard.

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-07-04 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $0.00 · Current $0.00

Hazardous substances 0689

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1026(l)(2)(ii): The employer did not make a copy of the Chromium (VI) standard, 29 CFR 1910.1026, readily available to all employees who were exposed to chromium (VI):   No copy of the standard was made available to employees in the welding department.

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-07-04 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $0.00 · Current $0.00

Hazardous substances 0689

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1200(h)(3)(ii): Employee training did not include the physical and health hazards of the chemicals in the work area:  Employees were not trained in the hazards of exposure to hexavalent chromium.

Issued

2015-06-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2015-07-29 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $4900.00 · Current $0.00 Reduced

Hazardous substances 0689

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1200(e)(1): Employers did not develop, implement, and maintain at each workplace, a written hazard communication program which at least describes how the criteria specified in paragraphs (f), (g), and (h) of this section for labels and other forms of warning, material safety data sheets, and employee information and training will be met, and which also includes the following:    (i) A list of the hazardous chemicals known to be present using an identity that is referenced on the appropriate material safety data sheet (the list may be compiled for the workplace as a whole or for individual work areas); and,  (ii) The methods the employer will use to inform employees of the hazards of non-routine tasks and the hazards associated with chemicals contained in unlabeled pipes in their work areas:    Although a template was obtained for the preparation of a written program, it was not used to develop the program; none of the blanks were filled in with the appropriate information.