OHSA Issues $472K in Fines for Alleged Safety Violations at Ohio Plant

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Endres Processing LLC, headquartered in Rosemount, Minn., and its subsidiary, Endres Processing Ohio LLC, with safety and health violations that include exposing workers to combustible dust hazards. The firm manufactures an animal feed supplement from unsold bakery products. Proposed fines total $472,900.

OSHA began a health inspection in June after receiving information that fires had occurred in the Ohio plant, and that large amounts of dust from the manufacturing process had accumulated throughout the worksite.

Following the health inspection, OSHA issued four willful violations with penalties totaling $252,000 and five serious violations with penalties totaling $14,900. The willful violations allege the lack of explosion protection, the failure to equip process equipment with combustible dust collection systems, hazardous accumulations of dust, and the use of electrical equipment that was unsafe to use in areas with combustible dust accumulation.

The serious violations address hazards from workers breathing the dust, allowing combustible materials in areas where workers were welding, and unsafe electrical equipment and practices. The proposed health violation fines total $266,900.

A safety inspection was also initiated, and OSHA issued two willful violations with penalties totaling $126,000 and 21 serious violations with penalties totaling $80,000 following that inspection. The willful violations allege confined space hazards and failing to train employees in using the fire fighting system.

The serious violations allege a variety of hazards. They include fall hazards, problems with emergency exit lighting, failure to train on and exposure to hazardous machine-energy sources, and additional unsafe electrical equipment and practices. The proposed safety violation fines total $206,000.

The Ohio site, then owned by Advanced Organics Inc., has been inspected twice since 2004, with serious citations issued for fall protection, combustible dust issues, electrical hazards, machine guarding and fall hazards following the earlier inspections.

The company has 15 business days from receipt of the citations to comply, request an informal conference with the OSHA area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

Source: OSHA, http://www.osha.gov.