OSHA fines toolmaker $164K over amputation

In less than two years, three workers at a leading tool manufacturer in Barberton, Ohio, suffered injuries from unguarded machinery, triggering an Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspection that led to $164,742 in proposed fines.

The latest injury at Wright Tool Company occurred on Oct. 26, 2022, when a worker suffered a left thumb amputation while hand-feeding parts into a drill press using air-activated clamps. In December 2020 and June 2022, two other workers performing similar tasks suffered laceration injuries, according to OSHA’s announcement on Thursday.

Investigators cited Wright Tool for one willful violation of machine guarding standards, as well as two serious and one other-than-serious violations. OSHA found the company also failed to conduct hazard assessments to identify personal protective equipment needs and other requirements, did not test energy control procedures at least annually or train each employee to ensure they understood hazardous energy control procedures, and failed to enclose shafting.