A seven-year employee of TimkenSteel in Canton, Ohio couldn’t work for several months after being struck by a 1,000-pound load that fell from a crane.
The man was working on the factory floor of TimkenSteel when a crane’s safety lath failed, releasing 1,000 pounds of equipment onto the ground below, fracturing the employee’s left foot and breaking several of his other bones.
OSHA issued TimkenSteel's Gambrinus plant one willful, one repeated and two serious safety citations on Oct. 30. It was the second time in a year OSHA found struck-by, fall and amputation hazards at the company's two Canton plants after inspections.
"This worker is lucky to be alive," said Howard Eberts, OSHA's area director in Cleveland. "We also observed conditions where workers could have fallen or lost limbs. It is unacceptable that the company has repeatedly been cited for these same hazards. TimkenSteel's safety and health program has major deficiencies that need to be addressed immediately."
The crane accident at the Gambrinus plant occurred only days after OSHA inspected the company’s Harrison steel plant under the Primary Metals Emphasis Program.
At that time, the agency issued eight repeated, eight serious and one other-than serious violation at the site. TimkenSteel faces proposed fines of $393,500 for the violations at both facilities and has been placed in the agency's Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
Harrison steel plant melts, rolls, produces and finishes steel, and its Gambrinus plant performs cold steel finishing.
OSHA found employees were exposed to: falls because of a lack of guardrails, slippery surfaces and protective equipment; live machinery operating parts during service and maintenance because locking devices, guards and other safety procedures were not used; damaged equipment; and electrical hazards.
TimkenSteel is an independent subsidiary of the Timken Co. and was established in 2014. The parent company has been inspected 27 times since 2005, resulting in 76 violations.
The manufacturer of large steel bars and seamless mechanical tubing was mostly recently cited by OSHA in November 2014.