Inspection Detail

Inspection: 126075449 - Big Tree Furniture

Inspection Information - Office: Long Beach District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 7:45 a.m. on June 22, 2000, Employee #1, a woodcutter with Big Tree Furniture, was using a Pacco drill press to drill furniture parts. The machine consisted of two electric horizontal drills and a pneumatic press that held the parts in position. During a routine drilling operation, a worker would place wood parts on the drill press and push the foot control to activate the pneumatic press. It would descend to hold the parts in place, and the horizontal drills would move forward to drill them. At the time of the accident, pallets of finished and unfinished wood parts were piled near Employee #1's work station, creating a narrow gap between them. A coworker who had just finished cleaning the restroom was moving along the corridor, and Employee #1 leaned forward to allow room for him to pass. This movement caused Employee #1 to accidentally step on the foot control. The pneumatic press descended, crushing the tip of his left index finger against the wood parts. Employee #1 was transported by paramedics to Lewis Medical Center, where the tip of his finger was surgically amputated. Causal factors in this accident included that the pathway between the drilling station and the pallet of wood parts was too narrow. The fact that coworkers were required to pass through the corridor to reach the men's restroom increased the probability that the press operator might accidentally step on the foot control. In the case of this accident, the safety cover on the foot control was also missing. The press component of the drill press was also unguarded. The employer was cited for a violations of T8CCR 4002(a), for moving parts of machinery or equipment, and of T8CCR 4185, for foot-operated devices.

Keywords: CLEARANCE, AMPUTATED, DRILL OPERATOR, FINGER, WORK RULES, FOOT CONTROL, CAUGHT BETWEEN, DRILL PRESS, FOOT-POWERED PRESS, UNGUARDED