64°Huron company fined after worker injured
Jan 28
2012
A Huron manufacturer faces a $59,500 fine from OSHA after a worker’s finger was crushed.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited International Automotive Components with 10 serious safety violations, two of which were related to the injury incident.
Officials said those violations were related to failing to make sure employees did not perform tasks under suspended loads and that they were kept clear of loads about to be lifted by cranes.
“We are working with OSHA and fully cooperating,” said David Ladd, spokesperson for IAC. “We take this seriously.”
The investigation at the Huron plant started Nov. 2 after an IAC employee had his finger crushed when a mold, being lifted by a remote-controlled crane, swung around and hit his hand.
OSHA said the company also failed to make sure employees working on presses had fall protection and a safe method to access molds, lock out power to machinery during maintenance, and improper wiring methods that exposed workers to electrical hazards.
Ladd said the company is conducting its own investigation.
“To determine every single step taken on the plant floor,” he said.
The company has 15 days from when it received the violation to comply or contest the findings.
Based in Southfield, Mich., IAC has a total of seven locations that employ 12,000 workers. The violations were the first at the Huron location, but other locations have been inspected seven times since 2007, resulting in the company being cited for 22 violations.
The Huron plant, located at 1608 Sawmill Parkway, manufactures instrument and door panels for the automotive industry.
See a press release on the violation here.
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08:18 AM
Bluto says
@ patriot , Let's place blame where blame is do . The line foremen and the supervisors . That's where this should have been nipped in the bud . It has nothing to do with being union or non union . I have seen some pretty scary set-ups on both sides ( union and non ) so please don't interject your political views into a situation that comes down to just bad business practices .
10:39 PM
patriot5 says
09:35 PM
wiredmama222 says
This is one more in a long line of incidences that needed to be reported to OSHA and weren't. It's about time
09:50 AM
Phil Packer says
The EPA and OSHA have made industry safer, healthier, and greener, but at what cost? Jobs and wages. Bad air and finger trauma have been replaced by stress over fear of losing your job, or just not making enough money to live. But let's blame Toyota.
03:12 PM
gilamonster says
Safety, not only relies on training and procedures but common sense of the employee. He had to have had his had in a danger zone while manipulating the tool.
02:45 PM
xtensionofme says
Maybe this incident is part of the reason why the old plant manager was fired & physically escorted off the premises?
10:40 AM
grandmasgirl says
Sometimes, things are done one way for so long that no one thinks of the safety aspects. It is just a case of "this is the way we do it". I was a union steward and on a safety committee while I was working. There were times I didn't see a potential safety issue, until someone pointed it out to me. Everyone has to work together to make sure workers are safe.
09:49 AM
looking around says
OSHA plays a major part in setting standards and regulations to protect workers health and safety but unfortunatley can't be on site at each facility to constantly monitor the situation, hence they are usually involved after the fact. The same is true with the EPA. I have to ask where were the health and saftey representitives of both the union and the company that allowed the degredation of procedures and methods that led to this accident. When it comes to safety in an industrial setting it's about attitude, you can't cut corners.