Inspection Detail

Inspection: 312804016 - Kroy Industries, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Wichita Area Office

Investigation Summary

On October 6, 2009, Employee #1 and two coworkers were setting up extrusion line Number 2 to extrude PVC (polyvinyl chloride) material into a 21-inch-diameter irrigation pipe. The crew on the night shift had worked on the equipment, preparing it for the set up phase. The line equipment consisted of an extruder, a metal die, a sizing sleeve, a cooling spray tank, and a pipe saw. Employee #1 was an assistant line foreman, who assisted in getting the line running. The first coworker was a line foreman who was in charge of turning the machine on and making adjustments as the PVC pipe was extruded. A second coworker acted as a helper in getting the line running. Before production began, the PVC pipe had to be extruded to about forty-five feet. As the first section of PVC was extruded, it was attached to an old section of pipe, so that it could be pulled out to about forty-five feet. To ensure that the extruded pipe kept its shape and did not get out of round, air was injected into the pipe as it was extruded. At the beginning of the process, a plug was installed at the end of the PVC pipe, so that the air would stay inside the pipe. This plug was connected to the front end die by a 42-foot-long log chain. The plug moved with the pipe as it lengthened during set up. It had been inside the far end of the pipe for about 6 hours as the pipe was being prepared for production. It was held in place by its force against the side walls of the pipe and also by a chain connecting the plug to the extruder die at the other end. During the set up phase, prior to production, the foreman and crew constantly adjusted the air pressure inside the pipe. Air was injected into the pipe cavity, and the pressure was regulated manually by the workers, who would turn a regulator screw up or down. At the time of the accident, about 42 feet of chain connected the plug to the die. An air pressure gauge was in place near the manual control and the air pressure regulator. Near the end of the set up phase, air pressure built up inside the pipe. This resultant force pushed on the plug, causing failure of the quick link chain connector. When the quick link failed, the plug was ejected from the end of the pipe. It struck Employee #1, who was standing at the end of the pipe, in the chest. He died at the scene. There were no other injuries.

Keywords: CHEST, AIR PRESSURE, IRRIGATION PIPE, STRUCK BY, FLYING OBJECT, PRESSURE RELEASE