Machine operators exposed to excessive heat at Sterling Technologies Inc. in Erie County

Employer name: Sterling Technologies Inc., 10047 Keystone Drive, Lake City, PA

Citations issued: On September 22, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued Sterling Technologies one general duty clause citation for exposing employees to heat stress conditions and one additional serious safety citation.

Investigation findings: OSHA found that during their 12-hour work shift, machine operators were exposed to excessive heat while working rotational molding ovens operating at 600 degrees Fahrenheit. Additionally, compressed gas cylinders were not secured.

Proposed penalties: $9,900

Quote: "Heat stress is not only an outdoor health hazard. Employees working indoors in elevated temperatures can also demonstrate the symptoms of heat-related illness," said Theresa A. Naim, OSHA's area director in Erie. "Heat stress can be reduced significantly by establishing an effective heat illness prevention program."

View the citations: https://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/Sterling_Technologies_Inc_1079222_9_22_15.pdf

The employer's workers' compensation insurer is Resource Edge Inc., headquartered in Rockwall, Texas.

OSHA has a free app for mobile devices that enables workers and supervisors to monitor the heat index at their work sites. Additionally, a web page provides information and resources on heat illness—including how to prevent it and what to do in an emergency — for workers and employers.

To ask questions; obtain compliance assistance; file a complaint; or report amputations, eye loss, 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 Erie Office at 814-874-5150.