OSH 5302 Unit 3 Project

1 Charleston Fire Manufacturing Safety Inspection Christian Hallock Columbia Southern University OSH 5302 Prof. Heather Frost November 21, 2023

2 Charleston Fire Manufacturing Safety Inspection Safety Inspection and Review Safety in the workplace is paramount. Injuries, illness, etc., can have negative effects on both the employee and on the company. The employee can lose on wages and overtime, affecting the livelihood that the job provides through unnecessary injuries on the job. The business can lose financially through production slowing/stopping and through workers’ compensation insurance payments. Thus, conducting a safety inspection of the facility, assists in preventing this injuries/illness from occurring, which in turn assists the staff and the company. Once completed, the inspection can provide recommendations, provide information on needed repairs/replacements of tools, and through Risk Assessment, assist in eliminating unnecessary risks taken during production. Quantitative Risk Assessment The two types of risk assessment are the quantitative and qualitative risk assessment data collections methods. Quantitative risk assessment requires more data to provide an accurate review, whereas qualitative risk assessment only requires immediate review of the observations seen during the inspection. Quantitative risk assessment is the model recommended for the current inspection conducted at Charleston Fire Manufacturing for the purpose of providing a more accurate review utilizing statistical information to determine the probability of injury or accident occurrence. With this information, the Safety Officer, Christian Hallock, can make recommendations on corrective actions that may be implemented to avoid any potential situations that may arise.

4 guard by locking it in the open position. At the time of the review, there have only been minor abrasions and lacerations which required basic medical attention. Based on the findings, it was determined that potential injuries include amputations of limbs and appendages. There are 57 machines with one person per shift working them. It is recommended that a pneumatic guard be installed at all locations to eliminate risk of injury without causing lapse in production. Estimated cost of modification: $56,600. Immediate action to correct this would be to establish appropriate lock out/tag out system for the machine. Additionally, trainings conducted by the organization for all staff on the safe operation of the machine should be held post haste. Based on the findings, implementation of correct operations of the device shows that the hazard potential moves from extremely high to medium risk. 3. Rotating Ream Bits The reamer is a device that is used to deburr holes within parts and is continuously rotating. There have been documented incidents of gloves getting caught while the device is in operation. Potential for finger amputation does exist with this device, with additional potential injuries of connective tissues in the hand and other soft tissue damage. The facility has 40 of these units with one employee manning them per shift. Currently there are no guards around the bit. One solution is to use shorter bits, which are expensive and must be replaced on a weekly basis. Estimated cost of modification: $14,000 on an annual basis. Effective immediately, a training program should be implemented on the safe usage of the device for all staff. Based on the implementation of the safety recommendations, risk associated with the operation of the device drops from extremely high to high (Appendix A).

5 4. Horizontal Burr King (Laceration and pinch-point Hazards) The Burr King is a continuously rotating device that is used to deburr materials. There have been documented instances of minor lacerations caused by skin contacting the edge of the belt with some requiring three-to-five stitches. There is a pinch point on the right side of the device that has the potential to cause amputation of appendages or other soft tissue damage. Note that this location to date has not been associated with any injuries. There are 40 stations with one employee per station per shift. It is recommended that a pneumatic guarding system be installed to eliminate potential injury. Estimated cost of modification: $48,000. It is recommended that the above modification be installed at all stations to avoid any injuries immediately due to the extremely high risk and no current safety mechanism. Additional training should be conducted to provide the employees with the knowledge of the risk factor that they are currently working around. See Appendix A for changes in risk once safety measures are implemented. 5. Vertical Belt Grinder The vertical belt grinder is a device that continuously rotates and is used to deburr the outside of parts. There has been documented incidents of employees receiving lacerations from the device when they meet the edges of the belt. Some of these incidents have required three to five stitches. There are 17 of these devices with one employee per shift manning them. It is recommended that a pneumatic guarding system be installed which would greatly reduce the risk during operations. Estimated cost for modification: $20,400.

7 Safety training should be conducted to make employees aware of the risk associated with the step, however, the risk associated with this hazard is medium. Implementation of the suggested repair drops the risk to low (Appendix A).

8 Appendix A RISK ASSESSMENT (BEFORE CONTROLS) Task or Condition LO F E DP H N P HR N Risk Level (Before) Circular cut-off saw housing. 5 5 6 12 1800 Extremely High Circular cut-off saw 5 5 6 12 1800 Extremely High Rotating ream bits 10 5 2 8 800 Extremely High Horizontal burr king 10 1 0.6 8 480 High Vertical belt grinder 8 5 0.5 8 160 Medium Handrail on the stairs 8 4 0.5 4 64 Medium Stair first step 8 4 0.5 4 64 Medium             Negligible             Negligible RISK ASSESSMENT (AFTER CONTROLS) Task LO F E DP H N P HR N Risk Level (Before) Circular cut-off saw housing 2 5 0.5 12 60 Medium Circular cut-off saw 2 5 0.5 12 60 Medium Rotating reamer bits 5 5 2 8 400 High Horizontal burr king 2 1 6 8 96 Medium Vertical belt grinder 1.5 5 0.5 4 30 Low Handrail on the stairs 1 4 0.5 4 8 Low Stair first step 1 4 0.5 4 8 Low             Negligible             Negligible Risk Levels: >500 Extremely High >250 and <500 High >50 and <250 Medium >5 and <50 Low Less than or equal to 5 Negligible