OSHA Inspection: WOODWARD, INC.

Issued

Feb 24, 2021

Penalty

Initial $7,315 · Current $7,315

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  OSH ACT of 1970 Section (5)(a)(1): 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 the hazard of a pinch point between the torque restraint bar and the blocking plate of the ram cylinder.    (a)  Woodward, Inc. at 3800 Wilson Ave in Loveland, CO 80538:  On or before September 1, 2020, the employer did not ensure that all pinch points for the EPG Bearing Press machine were fully guarded during the entire operating cycle in that a pinch point was introduced from a machine modification.  The machine modification included attaching a torque restraint bar to the ram cylinder which created a pinch point when the ram cylinder raises up after being activated by the two-hand switch.  As a result,  one employee inadvertently placed his hand in the danger zone where his right middle and ring fingers were crushed between the torque restraint bar and the base of the ram cylinder when the pneumatic operating system released the ram cylinder.   The crushed fingers required surgical amputation of parts of the two fingers.  This condition exposed employees to crushed-by hazards and amputation hazards.