Text For Citation: 01 Item/Group: 001C Hazard:

29 CFR 1910.1000(e): To achieve compliance with paragraphs (a) through (d) of this section, administrative or engineering controls must first be determined and implemented whenever feasible. When such controls are not feasible to achieve full compliance, protective equipment or any other protective measures shall be used to keep the exposure of employees to air contaminants within the limits prescribed in this section. Any equipment and/or technical measures used for this purpose must be approved for each particular use by a competent industrial hygienist or other technically qualified person. Whenever respirators are used, their use shall comply with 1910.134. At the establishment located at 2900 East Richmond Street, Shawano, Wisconsin; the employer did not determine and implement feasible administrative or engineering controls to achieve compliance with paragraph (a) of 29 CFR 1910.1000, exposing employees to chemical hazards in the following instances: a) On or about November 14, 2024, a Grinder was exposed to an 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA) of 32.9 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3) of the total dust fraction of particulate not otherwise regulated (PNOR), approximately 2.19 times the permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 15 mg/m3. The exposure level was derived from one sample collected over a 173 minute sampling period with zero exposure assumed for the unsampled period of 307 minutes. b) On or about January 30, 2025, a Furnace Operator was exposed to an 8-hour TWA of 19.3 mg/m3 of the total dust fraction of PNOR, approximately 1.29 times the PEL of 15 mg/m3. The exposure level was derived from one sample collected over a 459 minute sampling period with zero exposure assumed for the unsampled period of 21 minutes. Applicable engineering or administrative controls may include, but are not limited to the following: 1) Conduct thorough air studies in the Operator work areas to verify PNOR sources, existing controls, employee proximity to sources, and job tasks which expose employees in order to determine the most effective engineering and administrative controls. 2) Utilize local exhaust ventilation system to remove dust from the breathing zone of employees. 3) Reinforce initial trailing to employees on controlling and aiming the swarth and aiming the swarth (grinding sparks trail from handheld grinding tools) into the ventilation capture hoods as often as possible with periodic audits of swarth control, periodic refresher training and active enforcement from Lead employees and department Supervisors.