OSHA finds workers exposed to repeat, serious amputation hazards at Mansfield, Ohio, automotive parts coating plant

MANSFIELD, Ohio — Workers at the Kronis Coatings Division of Jay Industries Inc. were repeatedly exposed to amputation hazards from moving machinery parts during service and maintenance work. The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited the company, based in Mansfield, with one repeat and four serious safety violations, which carry proposed penalties of $62,400.

"Kronis Coatings Division has continually exposed workers to dangerous, moving machinery, which can cause life-altering injury, including amputation," said Kim Nelson, OSHA's area director in Toledo. "When an employer is cited for repeat violations, it demonstrates that safety is not part of the company's culture. That is unacceptable."

OSHA initiated an inspection July 17, 2014, as a part of its Site-Specific Targeting Program, which focuses inspection efforts on employers in high injury and illness industries. Amputation hazards are among OSHA's most frequently cited violations.

The company was cited for failure to protect workers from moving machinery parts and other violations in 2012 and during the July 17 inspection. A repeat violation exists when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years.

In addition, serious violations were cited for a lack of machine and tongue guarding, failure to adjust machinery properly and to test electrical personnel protective equipment as required. 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.

Kronis Coatings Division welds and powder coats metal automotive parts and employs 45 workers. Jay Industries, which employs about 1,000 workers companywide, operates five facilities in Mansfield — one of which is Kronis Coatings Division — and one each in Ann Arbor, Michigan; St. Charles, Illinois; and Gadsen, Alabama.

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 Toledo office at 419-259-7542.

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.