Inspection Detail

Inspection: 103025797 - Therm-O-Link Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Cleveland Area Office

Investigation Summary

Employee #1 and a coworker were positioning a top-heavy piece of machinery onto floor bolts with the use of jacks and cribbing. Employee #1 was on his knees adjusting the jack at one end when the unit tipped and crushed him to death. The unit weighed about 9,000 lb and was 10 1/2 ft long by 2 1/2 ft wide by 6 ft high. The jack in use was a 20 ton hydraulic Heinen-Werner, which showed no evidence of defect. The causal factor was the absence of any manner of securing the unit against tipping while it was raised on a jack.

Keywords: UNSECURED, WORK RULES, OVERTURN, CONSTRUCTION, CRUSHED, UNSTABLE POSITION