Worker injured after being caught in machinery at Kloeckner Metals Corp.

CINCINNATI — An employee was severely injured when he became caught in unguarded arbor rollers at Kloeckner Metals Corp. on April 22, 2014. The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited the Cincinnati manufacturing plant with one repeat and three serious safety violations, carrying proposed penalties of $56,000.

"This worker suffered a catastrophic injury because Kloeckner Metals failed to observe basic safety procedures," said Bill Wilkerson, OSHA's area director in Cincinnati. "The company knew how dangerous these machines could be, and they did not put their employees first. It's a culture too common in the manufacturing industry, and it needs to change."

OSHA's April 28, 2014, inspection found that a worker was exposed to the in-running nip point created by two rollers on the slitting line. He got caught in the nip point and suffered severe injuries. The company was issued a repeat violation for inadequate machine guarding. The company was previously cited for this violation at the same location in 2013.

OSHA issues repeat violations if any employer previously was cited for the same or a similar violation of any standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years.

Other amputation hazards found at the facility included the company's failure to implement specific lockout/tagout procedures to prevent machinery from operating during service and maintenance, which resulted in three serious citations. Specifically, workers clearing scrap on the slitting line were not provided devices to shut down machines during these activities, and mechanics were not trained on how to use them. These violations are among the most frequently cited by OSHA.

A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

Kloeckner Metals Corp. is based in Roswell, Georgia. The company employs 56 workers at its Cincinnati facility.

The company has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

To ask questions, obtain compliance assistance, file a complaint, or report workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA's toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the agency's Cincinnati Area Office at 513-841-4132.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.