OSHA Inspection: AGWRX COOPERATIVE

Issued

Apr 2, 2024

Penalty

Initial $12,421 · Current $9,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.333(c)(2): The employer did not ensure that only qualified persons were working on energized circuits and that qualified persons were familiar with the proper use of special precautionary techniques, personal protective equipment, insulating and shielding materials, and insulated tools:  (a)Agwrx Cooperative at 811 Burlington Drive, Watertown, SD 57201:  On or about and at times prior to December 19, 2023, the employer did not ensure that employees accessing a GE Transformer Breaker Panel located at Terminal 1 on the southwest side of Grain Bin 21, Catalog Number: 9T21B1004G02 were wearing the proper electrical arc flash personal protective equipment.  This condition exposed employees to shock and electrocution hazards associated with the missing dead front cover within the breaker panel.

Issued

Apr 2, 2024

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.305(d)(2): Panelboard enclosures. Panelboards were not mounted in cabinets, cutout boxes, or enclosures designed for the purpose and were not dead front. However, panelboards other than the dead front externally operable type are permitted where accessible only to qualified persons:   (a)Agwrx Cooperative at 811 Burlington Drive, Watertown, SD 57201:  On or about and at times prior to December 19, 2023, the employer did not ensure that missing electrical equipment was installed in a GE Transformer Breaker Panel located at Terminal 1 on the southwest side of Grain Bin 21, Catalog Number: 9T21B1004G02 in that a dead front was not installed.  This condition exposed employees to shock and electrocution hazards associated with the missing dead front within the entire breaker panel cabinet.

Issued

Apr 2, 2024

Penalty

Initial $12,421 · Current $8,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.219(d)(1): Pulleys with parts seven feet or less from the floor or work platform were not guarded in accordance with the requirements specified in 29 CFR 1910.219(m) and (o):  (a)Agwrx Cooperative at 811 Burlington Drive, Watertown, SD 57201:  On or about and at times prior to December 19, 2023, the employer did not ensure adequate guarding was in place on the RMS Mill in the Feed Mill Area, in that the belt and pulley system were open and not adequately guarded.  This condition exposed employees to caught-in hazards associated with the unguarded belt and pulley.  (b)Agwrx Cooperative at 811 Burlington Drive, Watertown, SD 57201:  On or about and at times prior to December 19, 2023, the employer did not ensure adequate guarding was in place on the Terminal 3 East Drag Conveyor Motor, in that the belt and pulley system were open and not adequately guarded.  This condition exposed employees to caught-in hazards associated with the unguarded belt and pulley.

Issued

Apr 2, 2024

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1910.219(h)(1): Projecting keys, setscrews, or other projections in revolving parts were not removed, made flush, or guarded by metal covers:  (a)Agwrx Cooperative at 811 Burlington Drive, Watertown, SD 57201:  On or about and at times prior to December 19, 2023, the employer did not ensure spinning drive mechanisms with a projecting keyway and projecting bolts heads on the Incline Drag Conveyor Equipment, Union Iron Works, Serial Number 98-1541 9/98 in the Terminal 1 Area was effectively guarded.  This condition exposed employees to caught-in hazards associated with the unguarded drive mechanism.  (b)Agwrx Cooperative at 811 Burlington Drive, Watertown, SD 57201:  On or about and at times prior to December 19, 2023, the employer did not ensure spinning drive mechanisms with a projecting keyway and projecting bolts heads on the Incline Drag Conveyor Equipment, Hi Roller, Model Number 3824.5-80-365, Serial Number 9905-2441 in the Terminal 1 Area was effectively guarded.  This condition exposed employees to caught-in hazards associated with the unguarded drive mechanism.  (c)Agwrx Cooperative at 811 Burlington Drive, Watertown, SD 57201:  On or about and at times prior to December 19, 2023, the employer did not ensure spinning drive mechanisms with a projecting keyway and projecting bolts heads on the East Drag Conveyor Motor in the Terminal 3 Area was effectively guarded. This condition exposed employees to caught-in hazards associated with the unguarded drive mechanism.

Issued

Apr 2, 2024

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)Agwrx Cooperative at 811 Burlington Drive, Watertown, SD 57201:  On or about and at times prior to December 19, 2023, the employer did not ensure that Permit Required Confined Space signs were posted in all areas the employer classified as a confined space. This condition exposed employees to hazards to include engulfment, asphyxiation, and mechanical hazards.