Cleburne, TX – OSHA issued $49,600 in fines to Johns Manville after receiving reports that a worker’s hand was severed in an accident at its plant in Cleburne (TX). Johns Manville, a Colorado-based manufacturer of insulation and roofing products for buildings and equipment. The 34-year-old employee was attempting to clear a jam in a machine at the time of the amputation.
In their statement, OSHA said the Johns Manville facility in Cleburne (TX) lacked clear steps for shutting down and securing machines and failed to train employees about the hazards associated with hazardous energy. According to OSHA’s report, flawed lockout/tagout procedures contributed to the accident: “Johns Manville’s flawed procedures to control hazardous energy sources and a lack of machine guards ultimately led to an amputation…[Johns Manville] should have evaluated its lockout/tagout program and provided proper machine guarding.”
OSHA requires that employees be trained on lockout policies and procedures. Training ensures that the purpose and function of the energy control program are understood by employees and that the knowledge and skills required for the safe application, usage, and removal of the energy controls are acquired by employees.
The $49,600 in fines were for lack of machine guards on a conveyor and allowing an unguarded and protruding shaft — both were repeat violations at the Cleburn plant. Similar violations were found at Johns Manville facilities in Ohio and New Jersey. The Cleburn (TX) site employs about 400 workers.
Contact an expert on our Safety & Compliance Team today to discuss how we can assist with lockout at your facility. Our lockout/tagout professionals use RAPID LOTO™. This unique program is a proprietary system developed by Martin Technical that allows faster and more accurate turnaround time on developing Lockout / Tagout procedures and placards. We utilize our own software program with hand-held tablets, and a rapid response in-field process to label equipment in the field. Through our software program, we can develop placards in just a few hours for you to review, keeping the information at hand relevant and fresh. Application of the placards to your equipment can often be done the next day.
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