OSHA has inspected Plastic Ingenuity, Inc. 11 times in Wisconsin since 1977.
The latest one began on Jan 4, 2022 on a referral, in Cross Plains.
Those inspections ended with 10 citation items: 3 serious and 7 other-than-serious.
Penalties were first proposed at $25,380 and now stand at $21,443, 16% lower after settlements or reviews.
Lockout/tagout comes up most often in these citations: 3 items under 1910.147.
How that compares: the median penalty per cited inspection for manufacturing employers since 2015 is $4,500, and Plastic Ingenuity, Inc. averages $7,094 (3 cited inspections).
Plastic Ingenuity, Inc. also files yearly injury logs with OSHA, summarized below.
It reported 5 severe injuries to OSHA since 2015.
Citation items per year, by inspection date.
Wisconsin · latest 90 days of OSHA records
232employers cited
Get notified the morning OSHA posts each new citation in Wisconsin: the employer, the site address, the rules broken and the penalty.
Incident on Dec 27, 2021: Employee fractures jaw when struck by falling oven door
At 6:30 a.m. on December 27, 2021, an employee working as a machine technician was inspecting a machine when he heard a noise coming from the chain area of the oven. The employee locked out the main electrical power source, however, not all hazardous energy sources were isolated or controlled. The energy control procedure required that a pin and lock be installed to control the gravity energy source posed by the open door. While the employee was inspecting the chain inside the oven when standing outside of the oven, he unknowingly pressed a push button outside the machine that closed the oven on his head. The employee fractured his jaw, requiring hospitalization.
Incident on Oct 2, 2020: Employee sustains multiple injuries from fall into extruder
At 11:45 a.m. on October 2, 2020, an employee working as a senior extruder operator for a plastic products manufacturer was preparing to clean the middle roller on the roll stand of a P4 Extruder. The machine was a was a Processing Technologies International Model RJU601220 (serial number 16532/4329) Plastic Extruder. While gathering cleaning supplies, the employee slipped or tripped and fell, right arm first, into a 4.5-inch gap between the in-running primary and middle motorized rollers. The employee reached the e-stop cord releasing the roller motion. This allowed the employee to fall to the floor where coworkers found him. The employee was hospitalized to treat broken ribs, a punctured lung, a broken clavicle, a fractured jaw and facial lacerations.
Incident on Oct 8, 2018: Employee amputates fingertip when caught between two large r
At 2:00 a.m. on October 8, 2018, an employee was manually pushing a large roll of plastic from an extruder machine and pinched his right hand's ring finger between that roll and a second. The employee amputated his fingertip. Hospitalization was not required.
From the Form 300A summaries employers file with OSHA each year. Rate = recordable cases per 100 full-time workers.
In 2024, the Cross Plains site logged 5 recordable injuries or illnesses among about 372 workers: 1.4 per 100 full-time workers, against a median of 2.6 for its industry. Those cases cost 14 days away from work.
Site and year
Workers
Cases
Days-away cases
Rate
Industry median
Plastic Ingenuity, Inc.
Cross Plains · 2024
372
5
2
1.4
2.6
Plastic Ingenuity, Inc. - Mazomanie
Mazomanie · 2024
304
13
10
4.1
2.6
Severe injury reports
Employers must report any work-related amputation, in-patient hospitalization or loss of an eye to OSHA within 24 hours. 5 reports on file.
An employee was attempting to change out a die on a machine using a tool lifter with gusset attachments. The die slid and the employee's right ring finger was pinched between the die and the lifting device, resulting in amputation at the second knuckle.
An employee was trying to find bolts in a machine oven with their right hand. The oven actuated and the top part of the oven moved and contacted the employee, resulting in a jaw fracture.
Aug 2, 2021, Cross Plains: Hospitalization · fractures · forearm(s)
An employee was backing a forklift out of a racking storage area. The employee's left arm was caught between the forklift's overhead cage and the racking system. The forearm was broken.
Oct 2, 2020, Mazomanie: Hospitalization · fractures · chest, except internal location of diseases or disorders
An employee was cleaning the rollers of a plastic extruder machine when he slipped or tripped and fell, becoming entangled in the rollers. The employee sustained cuts, broken ribs, and shoulder injuries.
An employee was preparing to remove plastic rolls from an extruder machine. The employee's right ring finger was crushed and amputated between two of the rolls.
The rules behind these citations
Current text from the Code of Federal Regulations. Some citations were issued under older wording.
(ii) The physical, health, simple asphyxiation, combustible dust, and pyrophoric gas hazards, as well as hazards not otherwise classified, of the chemicals in the work area;
(4) Energy control procedure. (i) Procedures shall be developed, documented and utilized for the control of potentially hazardous energy when employees are engaged in the activities covered by this section.
29 CFR 1910.147(c)(4)(ii)(d)
(D) Specific requirements for testing a machine or equipment to determine and verify the effectiveness of lockout devices, tagout devices, and other energy control measures.
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Source: U.S. Department of Labor, OSHA enforcement data. A citation is OSHA's allegation; employers can contest it, and the status column shows where each item stands. Something wrong on this page? Tell us.
