Inspection Detail

Inspection: 316667542 - Tri State Staffing

Inspection Information - Office: Van Nuys District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 6:00 p.m. on August 21, 2012, an employee was working as a machine operator at a jobsite in Oxnard, CA. He was a temporary worker. He was employed by Tri State Staffing, which was acting as his primary employer. He was assigned to work at Leading Industry, Inc., which was acting as his secondary employer. Leading Industry, Inc. was a privately owned company that manufactured plastic containers for berries. The employee had been employed by Tri State Staffing and Leading Industry for approximately five years as a machine operator. At the time of the incident, the employee was working at the Leading Industry's worksite with a Thermoforming Systems LLC Model Number V 5.0 trim press, with Serial Number 1073. It manufactured plastic trays for berries. The trim press had a feed mechanism near the area where the plastic berry trays were cut into individual containers. The press jammed there. The employee opened an interlocking gate to clear the jam. This opening of the gate failed to disengage the trim press. It attempted to feed formed plastic trays into the guiding mechanism, when the trim press cycled. The employee sustained an amputation of the middle, ring, and small fingers on his left hand. The employee was transported to Ventura Community Hospital, in Ventura, CA, where he underwent surgery for his injuries. His supervisor was working at another machine, and there were no direct witnesses to the incident. The Division was notified at approximately 7:40 p.m. on August 21, 2012, by Tri State Staffing's area vice-president of risk management. The Division was notified again of the incident at approximately 12:00 a.m. (midnight, six hours after the incident occurred) on August 21, 2012, by Leading Industry, Inc.'s plant manager. On August 31, 2012, the Division initiated an onsite investigation of the incident. The investigation concluded that the incident was caused by the employer's failure to ensure that the machine was deenergized or disengaged, and that the interlocking guard was functioning.

Keywords: AMPUTATED, FINGER, GUARD, MACHINE OPERATOR, INTERLOCK, JAMMED, LOCKOUT, PLASTIC MFG, MECH MAT HANDLING, MECH MALFUNCTION