Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1475457.015 - Epix Tube

Inspection Information - Office: Cincinnati Area Office

Investigation Summary

At 9:30 a.m. on April 7, 2020, an employee was working as a machine operator for a firm that manufactured fabricated structural metal. He was working in the warehouse, conducting production operations on mill number 1 at Turks Ssand 1. The employee was on the ingoing side of the mill. He was using a Scotch-Brite or similar abrasive pad to clean zinc from the metal rolls being fed into the machine. As the employee moved up and down the roll, the rollers grabbed his gloved right hand. The employee's right hand was pulled into the rollers. The employee suffered the partial amputation of the ring and middle fingers on his right hand. He was treated without hospitalization. The ingoing nip point lacked a guarding method such as barrier guards or electronic safety guards that would prevent employees from nearing the rotating parts. The firm's owner remarked that there was a written policy saying that employees should only clean the tube rolls on the exit side of the mill, and that employees were trained to clean the tube rolls on the exit side.

Keywords: Amputated, Amputation, Caught Between, Caught In, Cleaning, Finger, Glove, Hand, Instantaneous amputation, Machine Guarding, Metal Sheet, Metal Shop, Nip Point, Pulled In, Roller--Mach/Part, Training, Traumatic Amputation