OSHA Inspection: US PALLETS, LLC

Issued

Jul 31, 2025

Abate by

Oct 9, 2025

Penalty

Initial $2,838 · Current $1,987 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.147(c)(1): Energy control program. The employer shall establish a program consisting of energy control procedures, employee training and periodic inspections to ensure that before any employee performs 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) On and before 6/11/2025, the employer did not establish an energy control program  to address the following topics; energy control procedures, employee training and periodic inspections, for equipment such as but not limited to;  Smart Products One Man Pallet Dismantler bandsaw & Portable Pallet Dismantler Pallet Hawg bandsaw.  Employees such as operators were not provided energy control procedures to utilize, nor were they trained as authorized employees to ensure that they understood the purpose for the machine specific procedures and how to isolate each hazardous energy sources such as but not limited to;  electric and pneumatics.

Issued

Jul 31, 2025

Abate by

Sep 17, 2025

Penalty

Initial $2,838 · Current $1,987 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.213(i)(1):All portions of the saw blade shall be enclosed or guarded, except for the working portion of the blade between the bottom of the guide rolls and the table. Bandsaw wheels shall be fully encased. The outside periphery of the enclosure shall be solid. The front and back of the band wheels shall be either enclosed by solid material or by wire mesh or perforated metal. Such mesh or perforated metal shall be not less than 0.037 inch (U.S. Gage No. 20), and the openings shall be not greater than three-eighths inch. Solid material used for this purpose shall be of an equivalent strength and firmness. The guard for the portion of the blade between the sliding guide and the upper-saw-wheel guard shall protect the saw blade at the front and outer side. This portion of the guard shall be self-adjusting to raise and lower with the guide. The upper-wheel guard shall be made to conform to the travel of the saw on the wheel.  a) On or before 6/11/2025, the employer did not ensure that the cutting blade, for machines such as, but not limited to; Smart Products One Man Pallet Dismantler bandsaw & Portable Pallet Dismantler Pallet Hawg bandsaw, were guarded during the process of tearing the pallets down, in that while pushing the pallet through tear down blade the employee's hands would be within 5" of the moving blade exposing them to a caught-in hazard.