Russellville, AL – A Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. worker lost the first joint of his middle finger while trying to reassemble a chicken-part separating machine at the Russellville (AL) plant. The finger was amputated when the machine unexpectedly started up. OSHA has levied $77,000 in penalties for this September 2015 lockout/tagout accident. Lockout/tagout procedures, policies, and practices prevent this type of unexpected energization of machinery.
OSHA cited Pilgrim’s Pride for failing to document and train workers on specific procedures to keep machinery from starting up during maintenance and repairing procedures, known as lockout/tagout procedures.
Lockout procedures provide detailed instruction on how to isolate and lock each energy source for a given piece of equipment, helping to prevent the unexpected energization or startup of machinery and equipment, or the release of hazardous energy during service or maintenance activities. Having equipment specific lockout procedures written for each piece of equipment is required by OSHA. Martin Technical’s Rapid LOTO lockout procedure development program is designed to provide high quality procedures that are easy to follow.
Pilgrim’s Pride received a $7,000 penalty for an electrical cable that was damaged and improperly spliced. The additional $70,000 in fines come from Pilgrim’s Pride being a repeat offender – the Russellville plant was cited for the same violation in 2010, for not training workers on the right way to keep machinery from starting unexpectedly.
At Martin Technical, we genuinely care about people – contact an expert on our Safety & Compliance Team today to discuss how we can assist you, your workers, and your business.
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