Text For Citation: 02 Item/Group: 003 Hazard:

29 CFR 1910.147(d): Application of control. The established procedures for the application of energy control (the lockout or tagout procedures) shall cover the following elements and actions and shall be done in the sequence required by 29 CFR 1910.147(d)(1) through (d)(6): The employer does not protect employees from the hazard(s) associated with the pneumatic discharge gate of the mixer in the Batch Plant's Mixer Room during servicing and maintenance activities performed beneath the mixer (in the mixer's discharge chute) by applying energy control (lockout procedures) to control the hazardous pneumatic energy powering the opening and closing motion of the gate. a. On or about June 6, 2020, the employer did not ensure that a batch operator unjamming the pneumatically powered discharge gate of the mixer in the Batch Plant with an air chisel from the underside of the mixer (in the mixer's discharge chute) applied energy control procedures to control the hazardous pneumatic energy powering the opening and closing motion of the gate. The employer failed to ensure that the energy control application steps were implemented as an energy isolation device was not located and operated to isolate the mixer's discharge gate from the pneumatic energy source [per the 1910.147(d)(3) requirements]. As a result, the remaining energy control elements, involving lockout device application [(d)(4)], dissipation of stored or residual energy [(d)(5)], and verification of isolation [(d)(6)], were not implemented to protect the employee from this machine hazard, thereby exposing the employee to caught-in and struck-by hazards.