OSHA Inspection: GEORGIA POWER COMPANY

Issued

Apr 26, 2016

Abate by

Jun 13, 2016

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.269(d)(8)(iv): Whenever outside servicing personnel are to be engaged in activities covered by paragraph (d) of this section, the on-site employer and the outside employer shall inform each other of their respective lockout or tagout procedures, and each employer shall ensure that his or her personnel understand and comply with restrictions and prohibitions of the energy control procedures being used.   a.  Plant Bowen, JBR 3/4 Building - Prior to performing electrical circuit modification work using Georgia Power Company clearance procedures, Georgia Power Company and ABB, Inc. did not inform each others employee representatives of their respective lockout or tagout program, procedures and policies to ensure each employee understood and complied with the restrictions and prohibitions of the energy control procedures being used.

Issued

Apr 26, 2016

Abate by

Jun 13, 2016

Penalty

Initial $7,000 · Current $0 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.269(d)(2)(iii): Procedures shall be developed, documented, and used for the control of potentially hazardous energy covered by paragraph (d) of this section.  a. Plant Bowen, JBR 3/4 Building, Buss B - The Georgia Power clearance procedure used to isolate Frames 1 and 1A did not isolate all sources of power thereby exposing employees and subcontractors to the hazard of arc flash/blast and shock.

Issued

Apr 26, 2016

Abate by

Jun 13, 2016

Penalty

Initial $7,000 · Current $0 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.269(d)(2)(ii)(B)(2): In demonstrating that a level of safety is achieved in the tagout program equivalent to the level of safety obtained by the use of a lockout program, the employer shall demonstrate full compliance with all tagout-related provisions of this standard together with such additional elements as are necessary to provide the equivalent safety available from the use of a lockout device. Additional means to be considered as part of the demonstration of full employee protection shall include the implementation of additional safety measures such as the removal of an isolating circuit element, blocking of a controlling switch, opening of an extra disconnecting device, or the removal of a valve handle to reduce the likelihood of inadvertent energizing.  a.  Plant Bowen, JBR 3/4 Building - The Georgia Power Company does not have a tagout program which demonstrated a level of safety equivalent to that of a lockout program in that the written clearance procedure did not contain additional steps necessary for demonstrating equivalency such as the additional safety measure of removing an additional isolating  circuit element or the opening of an additional disconnecting device.

Issued

Apr 26, 2016

Abate by

Jun 13, 2016

Penalty

Initial $7,000 · Current $0 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.269(d)(8)(ii): When servicing or maintenance is performed by a crew, craft, department, or other group, they shall use a procedure which affords the employees a level of protection equivalent to that provided by the implementation of a personal lockout or tagout device. Group lockout or tagout devices shall be used in accordance with the procedures required by paragraphs (d)(2)(iii) and (d)(2)(iv) of this section including, but not limited to, the following specific requirements:  a.  Plant Bowen, JBR 3/4 Building - The contractors crew members who worked on the buss bar and in the switchgear did not have a procedure which afforded each exposed employee with a level of protection from shock and arc flash/blast hazards equivalent to that of a personal lock.

Issued

Apr 26, 2016

Abate by

Jun 13, 2016

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.269(d)(8)(ii)(B): Provision shall be made for the authorized employee to ascertain the exposure status of all individual group members with regard to the lockout or tagout of the machine or equipment;  a.  Plant Bowen, JBR 3/4 Building - The controlling employers tagout (clearance) procedure did not provide a provision to ensure that the contract primary authorized employee was provided an opportunity to review and inspect all energy isolating point, in that the contract authorized employee was not allowed to view and verify low voltage energy source isolation points.

Issued

Apr 26, 2016

Abate by

Jun 13, 2016

Penalty

Initial $38,500 · Current $0 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.269(d)(2)(iv)(B): Specific procedural steps for shutting down, isolating, blocking and securing machines or equipment to control hazardous energy;  a.  Plant Bowen, JBR 3/4 Building, Bus B - The employer did not develop and issue a specific clearance (tagout procedure) which included specific procedural steps necessary for the hanging of temporary protective grounds in Frame #7  Georgia Power Company was previously cited for a violation of this Occupational Safety and Health Standard 29 CFR 1910.268(d)(2)(iv)(B), which was contained in OSHA Inspection Number 900009, Citation Number 1, Item Number 6b and was affirmed as a final order on December 5, 2014, with respect to a workplace located at Plant Bowen, 317 Covered Bridge Rd SW, Cartersville GA 30120.

Issued

Apr 26, 2016

Abate by

Jun 13, 2016

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.269(d)(2)(ii)(C): After November 1, 1994, whenever replacement or major repair, renovation, or modification of a machine or equipment is performed, and whenever new machines or equipment are installed, energy isolating devices for such machines or equipment shall be designed to accept a lockout device.   a.  Plant Bowen, JBR 3/4 Building Bus B - The employer used tagout to identify energy source isolation at the point where a lockout device should have been used to control potentially hazardous energy points on electrical equipment manufactured and installed in 2005-2006 that was not capable of being locked out.

Issued

Apr 26, 2016

Abate by

Jun 13, 2016

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.269(d)(8)(iii): Procedures shall be used during shift or personnel changes to ensure the continuity of lockout or tagout protection, including provision for the orderly transfer of lockout or tagout device protection between off-going and on-coming employees, to minimize their exposure to hazards from the unexpected energizing or start-up of the machine or equipment or from the release of stored energy.  a.  Plant Bowen, JBR 3/4 Building - The company did not utilize a personnel change procedure to remove Mike Moore from controlling the department tagout/clearance for the procedure numbered and titled 4-09-10-20-02, 4160V Limestone Bus D Alternate Feeder 648444 after he left the company in May 2014.