UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

At 2:00 p.m. on January 12, 2022, Employee #1, a machine operator (native Spani sh speaker), was operating the CRS line 5 and was tasked with replacing the top film of the ALKAR-RapidPak RP-45 machine on the CRS line 5, a normal procedure to job task. After replacing the top film of the RapidPak at the CRS line 5 and attaching the top film to the bottom film, Employee#1 activated the machine to return to normal production operations. During operation, Employee #1 discovere d the film was not aligning correctly, as the film was getting stuck in the seal ing head creating jams at the RapidPak, a routine and common issue that occurs a pproximately 5-8 times a shift. Machine operators are tasked with adjusting and correcting any situation that causes jamming of the film of the RapidPak. To re align the bottom film of the RapidPak, Employee #1 manually pulled the bottom fi lm, while a coworker (a team leader) went to the operating side (North side) of CRS line 5 to cycle the Rapid Pak machine. While Employee #1 was manually pulli ng the bottom film with the left hand, the coworker pressed the "start on" at th e touch screen control system (or Human Machine Interface, "HMI") resulting in t he middle and ring finger of the left hand getting caught in between the cast to p and sealing plate (point of operation) of the ALKAR-RapidPak RP-45 machine. Em ployee #1 received initial crushing injuries to the ring and middle finger of th e left hand, ultimately resulting in amputation injuries to the ring and middle finger tips down to first knuckle. The employee was treated without hospitaliza tion.