Abstract: At approximately 3:30 p.m. on September 16, 2011, Employee #1, a field technician, was servicing a McElroy T618 fusion machine. He was checking the gap spacing between two pieces of PVC pipe to be fused, which is also known as gap testing. The machine required a minimal gap in order for proper heating and fusing of two pipes. The gap spacing was assessed via holding a piece of paper between the pipes, which are brought together through initiation of the carriage control. While he was conducting the test, he became distracted and his hand slipped in between the two pipes. The two pipes caught his thumb and partially amputated it. Employee #1 was transported to a medical center, where he underwent treatment and was hospitalized for postoperative care. Additional information about the accident was collected, which involved the following: The manufacturer stated that the machine required the use of two hands for operation and material placement. The machine had safety control feature that assist in avoidance of inadvertent contact when the pipes are drawn together. The employer has since established and implemented new procedures as well as a new measuring tool for gap testing. Additionally, the employer has an injury and illness prevention program that includes training on lockout/tagout requirements for involved equipment.