Inspection Detail

Inspection: 315531087 - Priority Business Services

Inspection Information - Office: Santa Ana District Office

Investigation Summary

On December 5, 2012, Employee #1, a machine operator with Priority Business Services, sustained a crush fracture and avulsion of his right pinky finger from contact with a hazardous pinch point of revolving rolls of the Lockformer rolling machine. The next day, Employee #1 received outpatient surgical amputation to repair the injured finger. When the accident occurred, Employee #1 was pulling a seven foot long by forty-eight inch wide piece of sheet metal through the forming stations of a Lockformer rolling machine, Serial #SC-99, to create an s-seam. A co-worker was managing the remaining end of the sheet to ensure that it remained aligned with the guides as it continued to be fed through the rollers. There are nine rolls on each side of the Lockformer rolling machine that are comprised of an upper and lower roll. These rolls revolve clockwise and feed the material through the machine while an s-seam is created at the edge of the sheet metal at the point of operation located inside the machine. The rolls were not guarded by the frame of the machine and their revolving motion creates a hazardous pinch point. Employee #1 was wearing gloves to protect against cuts by the sharp edges of the sheet metal and consequently, his glove got pulled between one of the rolls resulting in a crush fracture and avulsion of the tip of his right pinky finger.

Keywords: FRACTURE, SHEET METAL, FINGER, BLADE