Text For Citation: 01 Item/Group: 002 Hazard: LIFTING

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970: The employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees in that employees in the Degreaser area were exposed to fall hazards, while in a platform suspended from a crane or underhung hoist, due to failure of the hoist mechanism, load line, platform, or platform suspension means: (a)The platforms located in the Degreaser area designed for lifting dies in and out tanks using overhead underhung cranes or hoists, were also being used as a personnel lifting system for employees to access and exit tanks in the small parts area when performing cleaning and/or maintenance inside of the tanks, despite the availability of other access means. The platforms did not have a designed safety factor based on being a personnel lifting platform, nor did the platforms have standard guardrails around the platform or adequate anchorage points within the platform or on the boom tip of the cranes being utilized for employees utilizing fall protection to tie off to during suspension of the platforms. A feasible and acceptable abatement would be to utilize properly positioned and secured portable ladder access into the tanks and ensure that the use of personnel lifting platform in conjunction with overhead underhung cranes or hoists be limited to circumstances where other access means are not feasible (in accordance with ANSI/ASME B30.16 -1993), and only then be performed in accordance with ANSI/ASME B30.23-1998 for Personnel Lifting Systems.