OSHA Inspection: THE FERTRELL COMPANY

Issued

Dec 14, 2022

Abate by

Jan 11, 2023

Penalty

Initial $4,351 · Current $4,351

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.23(c)(11):  The employer did not ensure that portable ladders used to gain access to an upper landing surface had side rails that extended at least 3 feet (0.9 m) above the upper landing surface:   (a) Fertilizer Bulk Building - Employees used a portable ladder to access the pit that contained the bulk fertilizer mixer (closest to the Feed Building), and this ladder did not extend 3 feet above the top landing surface, exposing employees to the hazard of falling 6 feet 7 inches down into the pit, on or about June 22, 2022.  Abatement certification required within 10 days after abatement date. The certification shall include a statement that abatement is complete, date and method of abatement, and state employees and their representatives were informed of this abatement.

Issued

Dec 14, 2022

Abate by

Mar 1, 2023

Penalty

Initial $5,801 · Current $2,200 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.28(b)(1)(i): The employer did not ensure that each employee on a walking/working surface with an unprotected side or edge that was 4 feet (1.2 m) or more above a lower level was protected from falling by one or more of the following:  guardrail systems, safety net systems, or personal fall arrest systems:  (a) Feed Building - Employees climbed on top of the two Munson feed mixers to get into the mixers to clean them.  While standing on top of each mixer to remove and replace the covers and grates, employees did not use any fall protection, exposing the employees to the hazard of falling 11.5 feet to the concrete floor below, on or about July 1, 2022.  (b) Fertilizer Bulk Building - The pit that contained the bulk fertilizer mixer (closest to the Feed Building) had no fall protection system, exposing employees to the hazard of falling 6 feet 7 inches down into the pit, on or about July 21, 2022.  (c) Fertilizer Bulk Building - The tops of the bulk bins, to include the bone char bin, had no fall protection system, exposing employees to the hazard of falling 20 feet 9 inches from the top side of the bins to the Fertilizer Building floor below, on or about July 19, 2022.  Abatement certification required within 10 days after abatement date. The certification shall include a statement that abatement is complete, date and method of abatement, and state employees and their representatives were informed of this abatement.

Issued

Dec 14, 2022

Abate by

Jan 11, 2023

Penalty

Initial $7,252 · Current $6,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.146(c)(1): The employer did not evaluate the workplace to determine if any spaces were permit-required confined spaces:  (a) The Fertrell Company, 600 North 2nd Street, Bainbridge, Pennsylvania - The establishment included a pit for a bulk fertilizer mixer, silos, and an enclosed bulk bin for bone char, and the employer did not evaluate the workplace to determine whether any spaces were permit-required confined spaces, exposing employees to struck-by, caught-in, engulfment, and atmospheric hazards, on or about July 21, 2022.  Abatement certification required within 10 days after abatement date. The certification shall include a statement that abatement is complete, date and method of abatement, and state employees and their representatives were informed of this abatement.

Issued

Dec 14, 2022

Abate by

Jan 11, 2023

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.146(c)(2): The employer did not inform exposed employees, by posting danger signs or by any other equally effective means, of the existence and location of and the danger posed by the permit spaces:   (a) The Fertrell Company, 600 North 2nd Street, Bainbridge, Pennsylvania - The employer did not post signs identifying the silos, the bone char bulk bin, and the pit for the Bulk Fertilizer Mixer closest to the Feed Building as permit-required confined spaces, exposing employees to struck-by, caught-in, engulfment, and atmospheric hazards, on or about July 21, 2022.  Abatement certification required within 10 days after abatement date. The certification shall include a statement that abatement is complete, date and method of abatement, and state employees and their representatives were informed of this abatement.

Issued

Dec 14, 2022

Abate by

Jan 11, 2023

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.146(c)(4): When the employer decided that its employees would enter permit spaces, the employer did not develop and implement a written permit space entry program that complied with 29 CFR 1910.146:   (a) Fertilizer Bulk Building - The employer did not develop and implement a written permit space entry program, and employees entered the pit for the bulk fertilizer mixer closest to the Feed Building to do work, exposing employees to struck-by, caught-in, and atmospheric hazards, on or about June 22, 2022.  Abatement certification required within 10 days after abatement date. The certification shall include a statement that abatement is complete, date and method of abatement, and state employees and their representatives were informed of this abatement.

Issued

Dec 14, 2022

Abate by

Jan 11, 2023

Penalty

Initial $7,252 · Current $5,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.147(c)(1): The employer did not establish a program consisting of an energy control procedure, employee training and periodic inspections to ensure that before any employee performed any servicing or maintenance on a machine or equipment where the unexpected energizing, startup or release of stored energy could occur and cause injury, the machine or equipment shall be isolated from the energy source and rendered inoperative:  (a) The Fertrell Company, 600 North 2nd Street, Bainbridge, Pennsylvania - Employees performed servicing and maintenance activities, such as cleaning and making repairs, on a variety of machinery and equipment, including, but not limited to, the two Munson feed mixers, the bulk fertilizer mixers, and the Fischbein Empress Series Model 101 sewing heads, and the employer did not develop and implement a compete energy control program, consisting of machine specific energy control procedures, group lockout/tagout, testing and positioning procedures, periodic inspections, and employee training, exposing employees to hazards, including but not limited to, getting caught-in and struck-by moving machine parts, on or about July 21, 2022.  Abatement certification required within 10 days after abatement date. The certification shall include a statement that abatement is complete, date and method of abatement, and state employees and their representatives were informed of this abatement.

Issued

Dec 14, 2022

Abate by

Jan 11, 2023

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.147(c)(4)(i): Procedures were not developed, documented and utilized for the control of potentially hazardous energy when employees were engaged in activities covered by this section:   (a) The Fertrell Company, 600 North 2nd Street, Bainbridge, Pennsylvania - Employees performed servicing and maintenance activities, such as cleaning and making repairs, on a variety of machinery and equipment, including, but not limited to, the bulk fertilizer mixers and the Fischbein Empress Series Model 101 sewing heads, and the employer did not develop and implement machine-specific energy control procedures, exposing employees to hazards, including, but not limited to, getting caught-in and struck-by moving machine parts, on or about July 21, 2022.  Abatement certification required within 10 days after abatement date. The certification shall include a statement that abatement is complete, date and method of abatement, and state employees and their representatives were informed of this abatement.

Issued

Dec 14, 2022

Abate by

Jan 11, 2023

Penalty

Initial $4,351 · Current $2,449 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.219(c)(4)(i): Unguarded projecting shaft ends did not present a smooth edge and end and projected more than one-half the diameter of the shaft:   (a) Fertilizer Bagging Area - The horizontal shaft end, 13.5 inches above the floor, on the belt conveyor, which carried feed bags through the Fischbein Empress Series Model 101 sewing head, did not have guarding.  This shaft end had a diameter of 1 inch and projected 1 and 3/16 inches, exposing employees to an entanglement hazard, on or about July 21, 2022.  Abatement certification required within 10 days after abatement date. The certification shall include a statement that abatement is complete, date and method of abatement, and state employees and their representatives were informed of this abatement.

Issued

Dec 14, 2022

Abate by

Jan 11, 2023

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1904.4(a): The employer did not record each work-related fatality, injury or illness case that resulted in the general recording criteria on the OSHA Form 300 or equivalent:  (a) The Fertrell Company, 600 North 2nd Street, Bainbridge, Pennsylvania -  On or about July 5, 2022, the employer did not record the following workplace injury on the OSHA Form 300 or equivalent for calendar year 2022.  While unloading a 55-gallon drum of product, an employee's finger got pinched, resulting in a laceration that required stitches.  Abatement certification required within 10 days after abatement date.  The certification shall include a statement that abatement is complete, date and method of abatement, and states employees and their representatives were informed of this abatement.

Issued

Sep 1, 2022

Abate by

Sep 28, 2022

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1904.41(a)(2):  The employer had 20 or more employees, but fewer than 250 employees at any time during the previous calendar year, was classified in an industry listed in 29 CFR 1904.41 Appendix A, and the employer did not electronically submit information from the OSHA Form 300A Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses to OSHA or OSHA's designee no later than the date listed in 29 CFR 1904.41(c) of the year after the calendar year covered by the form.  (a) The Fertrell Company, 600 North 2nd Street, Bainbridge, Pennsylvania -  On or about July 21, 2022, the employer did not electronically submit information from their calendar year 2021 OSHA Form 300A by March 2, 2022.  Abatement certification required within 10 days after abatement date.  The certification shall include a statement that abatement is complete, date and method of abatement, and states employees and their representatives were informed of this abatement.