Assistant Supervisor Dies while Releasing a Jammed Product from a Plastic Injection Molding Machine – Massachusetts

A 25-year-old male assistant supervisor (the victim) was fatally injured while trying to release a jammed product from inside a plastic molding injection machine at a manufacturing facility. The victim went to the machine and noticed that the manufactured product was stuck on one-half of the machine’s die. The victim climbed inside the machine with a brass chisel and a hammer to try and cut the plastic product off the mold. While inside the machine, reportedly with the gate open, the machine cycled bringing the dies together and crushing the victim. Coworkers notified Emergency Medical Services (EMS). EMS responded to the incident site within minutes and pronounced the victim dead at the scene. The Medical Examiner’s Office was notified and arrived to remove the victim’s body. The Massachusetts Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Program concluded that to prevent similar occurrences in the future, employers should:

• Develop, implement, and enforce a comprehensive hazardous energy control program including a lockout/tagout procedure and routinely review and update the program and training.
• Ensure that their comprehensive safety program includes training on hazard recognition and the avoidance of unsafe work practices and conditions by conducting a job safety analysis (JSA)

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) should:

• Consider revising standard ANSI/SPI B151.1 to require all plastic injection molding machines, regardless of size, to have an additional safety device to protect workers from the moving parts in the mold processing area.

Manufacturers of plastic injection molding machines should:

• Consider an additional safety measure for all HIMMs, regardless of size, to protect workers from the moving parts in the mold processing area.