OSHA Fines Plant $7,000 for Industrial Accident which Left One Worker Dead
Earlier this year, a workplace accident at a manufacturing plant in Pennsylvania left one worker dead and two others injured. The accident occurred at a plant owned and operated by Mersen USA Bn Group, which is based in Boonton in Morris County, New Jersey about 20 minutes west of Wayne. Mersen is a “global expert in electrical specialties and graphite-based materials” which makes parts for use in electrical power applications capable of withstanding high temperatures.
The accident occurred when an employee placed parts into an oven which were coated with flammable materials. The oven, which was not rated to safely heat such parts, exploded, killing the company’s visiting Global Director of Research and Development and injuring two other employees.
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a citation and a proposed $7,000 fine on July 29th. In addition to the fine, OSHA recommends that the company train employees on the use of the oven and not allow improper materials to be placed into the oven.
Mersen USA is in OSHA’s database for a previous fatal accident. In 2012, a worker operating a powered industrial truck died when the raised fork from another truck struck his leg, cutting a main artery.
