Inspection Detail

Inspection: 310195391 - Select Remedy

Inspection Information - Office: Van Nuys District Office

Investigation Summary

On October 14, 2006, Employee #1 was a temporary employee working as a production line worker at a facility where cosmetic products were packaged in plastic bottles and jars. She was working on Line #11, on her regular shift of 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., in the "hole" position. Line #11 is one of twelve production conveyor lines. The line has several areas, such as the filling/capping area, the numbering area, the product labeling area, the UPC (universal product code) labeling area, and the packaging area. Employees are stationed along the conveyor line at the various work areas. At the time of the accident, Employee #1 was standing at her work station, "the hole," which is located next to the transfer unit and between the capping unit and the labeling areas. Her job was to watch and check the bottles on the conveyor to make sure that the caps were on tightly and that no spillage had occurred. She worked at this position until her break at 2:00 a.m. and returned to the same area after her break. After she had been working for about 15 minutes, the conveyor was stopped, because a bottle fallen over and spilled liquid onto the belt. Employee #1 removed some of the soiled bottles from the conveyor and began cleaning the surface of the conveyor with paper towels and alcohol. She said that the conveyor was moving at the time she was cleaning the top portion. This is contrary to the operation as described by her employer, who said that when motion in the capping area is stopped, the conveyor running to the transfer unit, where Employee #1 was standing, is also stopped. The transfer unit, however, is not stopped, unless someone manually turns it off at the switch. The area where the employee's injury occurred was on the belt and pulley of the transfer unit. They are located 37 inches above the floor. They are covered on the top, but not on the bottom or on the inside next to the conveyor. Employee #1 was bending over to look at the adjacent conveyor belt to see if there was liquid on that needed to be cleaned off, when she unknowingly placed her hand with the paper towels on the cover of the transfer unit. The paper towels were pulled into the belt and pulley, and her hand was pulled into the nip point. She sustained the amputation and fracture of the distal phalanx of the little finger on her right hand. She was taken by ambulance to Henry Mayo Hospital in Valencia, where she was treated and released after about three hours. She had additional follow-up treatment and physical therapy with a doctor in Mission Hills. She has not returned to work. There was no accident-related violation.

Keywords: AMPUTATED, FINGER, CLEANING, CONVEYOR, MECH MAT HANDLING, NIP POINT, HAND