Abstract: The equipment that injured Employee #1 is a cheese shredder/grater. The machine is used to shred and/or grate cheese. Employee #1 and a coworker are responsible for cleaning the equipment between shift changes. To clean the machine, Employee #1 had to lockout the equipment and disassemble it by removing the guards, funnel, and dice blades. These parts are then placed on the floor and cleaned with a high pressure hose. After these components are washed, they are reassembled. The machine is turned on and checked to see if it was assembled properly. On the day of his injury, Employee #1 had reassembled the equipment and started it up. The machine was making a noise, so he turned it off and removed the dicer blade guard (this is where the noise was coming from). While the machine was running, he ascended a stepladder to get closer to the dicer blade. While climbing the ladder, his foot slipped causing his hand to strike the machine in the area where the dicer blades were rotating. His right index finger struck the dicer blade assembly. Cause of accident: employee slipped while ascending a ladder.