OSHA Inspection: HEISE INDUSTRIES, INC.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Mar 17, 2016

Penalty

Initial $4,900 · Current $3,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.132(d)(1): The employer did not assess the workplace to determine if hazards are present, or are likely to be present, which necessitate the use of personal protective equipment (PPE):    Shop, Wiping Area and Surface Grinder Area    On or about 8/4/15, employees working in the shop with beryllium copper were not required to wear approved chemical resistant gloves.  Gloves were optional even though beryllium is known to cause dermatitis and sensitization.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Mar 17, 2016

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.138(a): The employer did not select and require employees to use appropriate hand protection when employees hands were exposed to hazardous conditions  Shop, Wiping Area and Surface Grinder Area  On or about 8/4/15, employees working in the shop with beryllium copper were not required to wear approved chemical resistant gloves.  Gloves were optional even though beryllium is known to cause dermatitis and sensitization.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Mar 17, 2016

Penalty

Initial $2,800 · Current $2,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.132(h)(1): Personal protective equipment (PPE), was not provided by the employer at no cost to employees.     Shop     On or about 10/29/15, employees were required to pay for the laundering of the company-supplied uniforms worn in the shop as personal protection when working with beryllium.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Mar 17, 2016

Penalty

Initial $4,900 · Current $3,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.133(a)(1): The employer did not ensure that each affected employee uses appropriate eye or face protection when exposed to eye or face hazards from flying particles, molten metal, liquid chemicals, acids or caustic liquids, chemical gases or vapors, or potentially injurious light radiation:     Shop, Wiping Area and Surface Grinder Area    On or about 8/4/15, employees working in the shop on wiping and surface grinding operations were not required to wear the appropriate eye protection.  Workers performing these tasks are exposed to flying metal particulates from hand and pneumatic sanding and metalworking fluid containing metal particulates.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Mar 17, 2016

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.133(a)(3): 29 CFR 1910.133(a)(3):  The employer did not ensure that each affected employee who wore prescription lenses while engaged in operations that involved eye hazards wore eye protection that incorporated the prescription in its design, or wore eye protection that could be worn over the prescription lenses without disturbing the proper position of the prescription lenses or the protective lenses.   Shop, Wiping Area and Surface Grinder Area  On or about 8/4/15, employees working in the shop on wiping and surface grinding operations, who wore prescription glasses, did not wear appropriate eye protection.  Their prescription glasses were not protective, nor did they wear safety glasses over them.  Workers performing these tasks are exposed to flying metal particulates from hand and pneumatic sanding and metalworking fluid containing metal particulates.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Jun 9, 2016

Penalty

Initial $4,900 · Current $0 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.134(c)(1): A written respiratory protection program that included the provisions in 29 CFR 1910.134(c)(1)(i) - (ix) with worksite specific procedures was not established and implemented for required respirator use:    Shop, Wiping Area    On or about 9/17/15, employees were exposed to a concentration of beryllium that exceeds the permissible exposure limit of 2 ug/m3 and therefore requires respirator use.  The employer did not have a written respiratory protection program implemented for this required respirator use.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Jun 9, 2016

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.134(e)(1): The employer did not provide a medical evaluation to determine the employee's ability to use a respirator, before the employee was fit tested or required to use the respirator in the workplace:    Shop, Wiping Area    On or about 9/17/15, employees were exposed to a concentration of beryllium that exceeds the permissible exposure limit of 2 ug/m3 and therefore requires respirator use. Employees working with beryllium copper in the wiping area were not provided medical evaluations before wearing N95 filtering facepiece respirators.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Jun 9, 2016

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.134(f)(1): The employer did not ensure that employee(s) required to use a tight-fitting facepiece respirator passed the appropriate qualitative fit test (QLFT) or quantitative fit test (QNFT):    Shop, Wiping Area    On or about 9/17/15, employees were exposed to a concentration of beryllium that exceeds the permissible exposure limit of 2 ug/m3 and therefore requires respirator use. Employees working with beryllium copper in the wiping area were not provided fit tests before wearing N95 filtering facepiece respirators.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Jun 9, 2016

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.134(k)(1): The employer did not provide effective training to employees who were required to use respirators:    Shop, Wiping Area    On or about 9/17/15, employees who were exposed to a concentration of beryllium that exceeds the permissible exposure limit of 2 ug/m3, and therefore requires respirator use, were not provided effective training in the use of the N95 filtering facepiece respirators.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Mar 17, 2016

Penalty

Initial $3,500 · Current $2,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.141(a)(4)(ii): All sweepings, solid or liquid wastes, refuse and garbage was not removed in such a manner as to avoid creating a menace to health and as often as necessary or appropriate to maintain the place of employment in a sanitary condition.      Shop, Wiping area    On or about 8/4/15, the carts and workbenches in the wiping area of the shop were found to have significant  levels of beryllium, chromium and copper present.  The area is cleaned by dry sweeping and wiping horizontal surfaces, which is not sufficient to remove the fine metal particulate deposited on the surfaces due to the work done in the area.  The level of beryllium on a workbench in the wiping area was 66 ug/100cm2.  The DOE has a surface contamination level for housekeeping on beryllium of 3 ug/100cm2.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Mar 17, 2016

Penalty

Initial $3,500 · Current $2,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.141(g)(2): Employees were permitted to consume food or beverage in area(s) exposed to toxic materials:    Shop, Wiping Area and Surface Grinder Area       On or about 9/17/15, employees working in the shop, sanding and grinding beryllium, were permitted to consume food and beverages in the work area.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Mar 17, 2016

Penalty

Initial $2,800 · Current $2,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.304(b)(2): Outlet devices had an ampere rating less than the load being served:    Conference room    On or about 11/13/15, two relocatable power taps and power strips, each containing six outlets, were daisy chained to a three outlet extension cord, which was plugged into another plug strip that was plugged into the wall outlet.  UL-listed relocatable power taps are required to be directly connected to a permanently installed branch circuit receptacle and not to be connected in series to other relocatable power taps or extension cords.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Mar 17, 2016

Penalty

Initial $2,800 · Current $2,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.305(g)(1)(iv)(B): Flexible cords and cables were run through holes in walls, ceilings, or floors    Conference Room    On or about 11/13/15, an extension cord was observed plugged into an outlet in the conference room and then run up the wall and through a tile in the drop ceiling.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Aug 9, 2016

Penalty

Initial $4,900 · Current $3,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1000(b)(1): Employee(s) were exposed to an airborne concentration of Beryllium listed in Table Z-2 in excess of the 8 hour Time Weighted Average concentration of 2 ug/m3:    Shop. Wiping Area    On or about 9/17/15, an employee performing hand and pneumatic sanding on a mold containing beryllium copper, was exposed to an eight hour time weighted average concentration of beryllium of 8 ug/m3, which is four times greater than the permissible exposure limit of 2 ug/m3.

Issued

Jan 29, 2016

Abate by

Aug 9, 2016

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.1000(e): Feasible administrative or engineering controls were not determined and implemented to achieve compliance with the limits prescribed in 29 CFR 1910.1000(a) through (d):  Shop, Wiping Area  On or about 9/17/15, an employee working in the wiping area hand sanded and used pneumatic tools to polish molds containing beryllium copper without the use of a local exhaust ventilation system, resulting in an exposure to beryllium of  8 ug/m3, that was four times greater than the permissible exposure limit at 2 ug/m3.