OSHA Inspection: HONDO INC. DBA TRI-STATE COCA-COLA BOTTLING CO.

Issued

2003-07-14 00:00:00

Abate by

2003-11-25 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $4500.00 · Current $3000.00 Reduced

General-duty citation text

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970: The
employer did not
furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from
recognized hazards
that were causing or were likely to cause serious physical harm to
employees in that
employees were required to perform material handling tasks involving
ergonomic risk factors
including, but not limited to, forceful exertions, repetitive motions, and
awkward postures
occurring for prolonged durations which had caused, are causing, or are
likely to cause
injuries:
(a) During the period from January 14, 2003 to July 14, 2003 the Side Load
Delivery Truck
Drivers and the Full Service Delivery Truck Drivers who work out of the
Coca-Cola facility
located on Duck Creek Road in Cincinnati, Ohio performed repeated manual
lifting/lowering,
pushing, pulling, bending, reaching, twisting and other tasks associated
with the delivery of
Coca-Cola products from trucks to establishments.  These actions, which
required
employees
to handle items such as "bag in boxes", beverage cases, and carbon dioxide
tanks, to remove
plastic shrink wrap from stacks of product, and to frequently manually
transport loads
weighing in the range of 200 to 500 pounds on carts, exposed employees to
hazards which
had caused, are causing or are likely to cause musculoskeletal disorders
(MSDs) involving
the back, shoulders and arm/hand.
Abatement
While some ergonomic related risk factors can be reduced or eliminated by
implementing a
single means of abatement, in most cases a process that includes analysis
of the worksite,
medical management, training and education of employees (in both
recognition of injury and
avoidance of injury) and hazard prevention and control will provide the
most effective
method of addressing the factors.  The employer may adopt any measures
that are effective
in reducing or eliminating the risk factors.  Examples of such measures
are as follows:
Hazard prevention and control includes feasible engineering,
administrative and work
practice controls.
(a)  Some examples of engineering controls which may apply to this
workplace include:
1.Provide 2-wheel manual handcarts having a third wheel that flips down,
and/or a
three-wheel "stair-climber," to employees.  Provide 2-wheel and/or 4-wheel
manual
handcarts with brakes to enable employees to maintain control of the load
and its speed with
minimal effort and exertion when it is traveling down a slope.
2.Provide "pull out" stand-on platforms for the sides of the side load and
full service
trucks to enable drivers to reduce the number of extended overhead reaches.
3.Provide removable drop down shelves to permit direct and easy access to
low
volume
products.
4.Provide handhold cutouts on all "bag in boxes" and on cardboard cases to
improve
grip.5.Label cardboard boxes and cases on all sides to reduce time and
motion spent on
manually handling product.
6.Provide safety collars on all carbon dioxide tanks to make them easier
to grasp and
lift.
7.Provide grab handles on trucks to improve leverage and prevent falls.
8.Provide door wedges to drivers to enable them to securely prop open
doors through
which they must transport heavy loads.
9.Provide retractable utility knives to drivers who remove shrink wrap
from stacks of
product to eliminate the need for drivers to manually pull it apart.
10.Provide an adequate number of curb ramps on each side load and full
service truck.
11.Provide reduced volume "bag in box" containers to make containers
lighter and easier
to handle.
Administrative controls are implemented to reduce the duration, frequency
and severity of
exposure to manual material handling hazards. These controls may include
job reduction of
repetitions and preventive maintenance of related equipment.
Some examples of administrative controls which may apply to this workplace
include:
1.Maximize the use of "pocket loading" to eliminate or substantially
reduce the
rearranging of product on the truck by the drivers and take advantage of
customers' ability to
"fork off" skids, where available.
2.When "pocket loading" is not an option, ensure use of straight stacking
of
the product
of the same flavor and type from front to back within each bay of the
truck.
3.Provide an accurate load diagram on a daily basis of each product's
location in each
bay on each truck.
4.Ensure proper maintenance and working order of: bay doors on trucks, bay
door
straps, and blades on knives used to cut shrink wrap. Also, ensure that
wooden pallets, 2-
wheel handcarts or dollies, and their wheels are maintained in good
condition.
5.Ensure coordination between employees who load beverages on the delivery
trucks
and the Side Load Delivery Truck Drivers and Full Service Drivers on a
daily basis in order
to minimize manual material handling.
Work practice controls are implemented to include proper work techniques,
new employee
conditioning, proper placement of loads, and reduction of weight lifted.
Some examples of
work practice controls which may apply to this workplace include:
1.Avoid overstacking product on dollies to prevent impaired visibility and
to increase
load stability.
2.Ensure the use of curb ramps and door stops/wedges.