Abstract: At 12:10 a.m. on September 19,1997, Employee #1, a press brake operator with two years of experience, was bending parts on a 80 ton press brake. The standard procedure was to hold the given part with thumbs on an extended flange, to place the part against spring-loaded stops that held it firmly in place, and then to activate a cycle with a covered foot pedal. Employee #1 was riding the foot petal when, for some reason, he ran his right hand across the top of a part. The "Link Lite" system, a point-of-operation guard using light beam curtain protection, immediately stopped the ram, pinning Employee #1's right index and middle fingers between it and bolster dies. It took approximately 40 minutes to release his fingers from the machine. Employee #1 sustained only minor contusions, although only a fraction of an inch separated his fingers from amputation. The Link Lite system was functional with only the lowest light blanked out. Employee #1's state of mind may have contributed to the accident. Two months before, the job was posted with a piece-per-hour rate of 218. Employee #1's piece-per-hour rate was 95, and he apparently felt pressure to speed up.