Tool maker cited following worker’s partial finger amputation

Federal workplace safety regulators have cited and proposed fines totaling $213,411 against an Ohio tool manufacturer after an employee suffered a partial finger amputation.

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Wooster, Ohio-based ArtiFlex Manufacturing L.L.C. for exposing workers to amputation hazards after investigators determined that the manufacturer failed to adequately guard pinch points on a conveyor belt, according to a statement issued on Thursday.

OSHA cited the company for similar violations at the same Wooster location in 2016, and has now placed ArtiFlex Manufacturing in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program, which focuses on inspecting employers that the agency says have demonstrated indifference to their Occupational Safety and Health Act obligations through willful, repeated or failure-to-abate violations.

"This employer's repeated failure to adequately guard machine operating parts put workers at risk for serious injuries," Howard Eberts, OSHA area office director in Cleveland, said in the statement. "Employers are required to install and maintain machine guards to protect workers from amputation hazards."

A company spokesperson could not be immediately reached for comment.