Machine operator dies of crushing injuries when caught by a bridle roller on a hot tin coating line.
Authors
New York State Department of Health/Health Research Incorporated
Source
Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE 02NY026, 2003 Nov; :1-7
Abstract
On May 13, 2002, a 52 year-old male machine operator (the victim), who was employed by a copper manufacturing company, sustained fatal crushing injuries as a result of being caught by an ingoing pinch point on a hot tin coating machine (tinning line). The pinch point was created by a moving metal strip that was to be coated and a steel bridle roller that tensioned the strip on the tinning line. At the time of the incident, the victim was one of two second-shift operators on the tinning line. A new coil of brass strip had just been loaded onto the machine and the tinning line was running at a speed of 50 feet per minute (FPM). There were no witnesses to the incident. It appeared that the victim's left glove became caught between a bridle roller and the moving brass strip while he was wiping the bridle roller with a piece of sand paper. He was pulled into the line and sustained crushing injuries to his head. At approximately 8:30 PM, the other second-shift operator noticed that the brass strip was out of alignment. He followed the brass strip to the end of the line and found the victim caught and crushed by the bridle roller and the brass strip. The operator immediately hit the emergency stop button to shut down the line and notified the shift supervisor. The shift supervisor phoned the plant EMT, who arrived at the scene within minutes. A state police investigator also responded to and secured the site. The medical examiner was called and pronounced the victim dead at the scene. New York State Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (NY FACE) investigators concluded that to help prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future, employers should: 1. Train and closely supervise employees in standard machinery cleaning procedures and strictly enforce adherence to these procedures; 2. Install a barrier guard that interlocks with the tinning line to ensure proper line shut down during maintenance; 3. Affix and maintain warning signs reminding operators of the dangers of cleaning machinery without shutting down and locking out the line.
Keywords
Region-2; Accident-analysis; Accident-prevention; Accidents; Injuries; Injury-prevention; Traumatic-injuries; Work-operations; Work-analysis; Work-areas; Work-performance; Work-practices; Safety-education; Safety-equipment; Safety-measures; Safety-monitoring; Machine-guarding; Warning-devices; Warning-signals; Warning-signs; Factory-workers; Machine-operation; Machine-operators; Metal-finishing
Document Type
Field Studies; Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation
Funding Type
Cooperative Agreement
NTIS Accession No.
PB2010-111710
Identifying No.
FACE-02NY026; Cooperative-Agreement-Number-U60-CCU-220784
Source Name
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Performing Organization
New York State Department of Health/Health Research Incorporated
