Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1470135.015 - Opportunity Development Centers, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Appleton Area Office

Investigation Summary

At 8:45 a.m. on March 3, 2020, Employee #1 would place the wood to be cut on the infeed roller system. Once the board was cut, the employee would take the boards off the outfeed side and stack the pile. The infeed side of the enclosed guard had adjustable guards which were not adjusted. Each new set of boards required the operator to cut 1-2 off to ensure a true square cut. The employee placed his hand in the outfeed section of the inadequately guarded outfeed opening and was adjusting the board since the operator had pushed the boards too far forward. As the employee was pushing the board back, the machine operator had activated the clamp, which was used to hold the boards in place. A short period after activating the clamp, the operator activated the up-cut saw with the two-hand control. The clamp had caught between the employee's hand and board not releasing as the saw blade came up, striking the employee's thumb, resulting in an amputation. The employee was treated without hospitalization. The investigation revealed that the up-cut saw had a clear enclosure in the front where the clamp and saw blade were visible to the operator. The distance between the outfeed guard and saw blade was approximately 18 inches. The operator would have been positioned nearly directly in front of the saw blade.

Keywords: Amputated, Amputation, Clamp, Machine Guarding, Roller--Mach/Part, Saw, Thumb