Inspection Detail

Inspection: 300775319 - Hickory Springs

Inspection Information - Office: Long Beach District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 2:00 p.m. on May 30, 2000, Employee #1, a chemical assistant for a manufacturer of foam slabs for the furniture and aerospace industry, was clearing a jam of paper backing from a metal conveyor in the foam pouring area. In this process, the foam was sprayed onto a metal conveyor that was lined with a paper carrier sheet. The paper was peeled away from the foam slab as it traveled from the metal conveyor to the roller conveyor, where a cut-off saw sliced the foam into sections. The jam occurred when the paper carrier sheet for the metal conveyor ripped, causing it to bunch up at the beginning of the roller conveyor system. With the process still in operation, Employee #1 climbed into the space underneath the metal conveyor to unjam the paper from the roller conveyor and to rethread it to the adjacent collector roll. He was reaching in when his left arm became pinned beneath the rollers and the foam slab traveling down the line. He sustained a fracture of his left radial ulna from the weight and motion of the slab, but he was able to free his arm. Employee #1 was transported to the hospital, where he was admitted for three days.

Keywords: FRACTURE, PINNED, WORK RULES, ROLLER CONVEYOR, JAMMED, LOCKOUT, ROLLER--MACH/PART, CAUGHT BETWEEN, ARM, NIP POINT