Employee suffers injury after being caught in machinery at Parker Hannifin plant in Lewisburg, Ohio

LEWISBURG, Ohio — A 44-year-old machine operator suffered severe injuries when a part of his face was caught in a power press he operated at Parker Hannifin Corp.'s Lewisburg, Ohio, plant. An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued one repeat citation and two serious safety violations for exposing the worker to machinery operating parts with inadequate safeguards. Proposed penalties total $52,500.

"Employers must maintain machine guarding on mechanical power presses and ensure proper guarding adjustment to protect operators from injury," said Bill Wilkerson, OSHA's area director in Cincinnati. "Injuries that involve machinery and equipment often result in amputation, death or permanent disability. These are completely preventable hazards, which OSHA continues to identify and eliminate because they are among the most frequently cited."

OSHA determined that the employee, who worked at the company for 17 years, was caught between the upper and lower die in the press while he trimmed a forged tube fitting part, Sept. 17, 2014. The three violations cite the plant, which manufactures hydraulic tube fittings, for improperly adjusted machine guarding.

In 2010, Parker Hannifin was cited for a similar violation at its Batesville, Mississippi, plant, which resulted in a repeat violation. OSHA issues repeat violations if an 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.

Parker Hannifin employs approximately 57,500 people in 50 countries. Headquartered in Cleveland, 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 513-8410-4132.

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.