design safety analysis | Warren Forensics

Tag Archive: design safety analysis

Working on the Waves While Working the Waves…
August 3, 2020 9:27 am Leave a Comment
The rumors of my pending retirement have been greatly exaggerated…..

Ever since I heard about The Great Loop I have wanted to cruise it (www.greatloop.org). To successfully complete the Loop, one needs to have 3 things: adequate equipment, adequate time, and adequate health. I had the first and third. To secure the second, I had floated the idea of a two-year sabbatical. A year to complete any existing cases and a year to execute The Great Loop.

With the arrival of COVID-19, our firm went to remote work. (more…)
The CE Mark and What Should It Mean to You? Part Two
July 20, 2020 2:58 pm Leave a Comment
In the previous blog (Part One) we discussed the backstory behind the two stylized letters CE and what it means to the design of machinery bearing the mark. We outlined some of the requirements of the “Machinery Directive” (MD) which include what are known as “Essential Health and Safety Requirements.” The Essential Health and Safety Requirements incorporate an iterative risk reduction process during design that takes into account (more…)
Shedding Some Light on Fluorescent Light Fixture Fires
May 28, 2020 3:06 pm Leave a Comment
Lighting systems in buildings and other structures have undergone changes over the years. Many of these changes have occurred as manufacturers have developed more efficient lighting methods. Lighting loads can represent the largest category of electrical load in many buildings, thus improved lighting efficiency may significantly lower your power bill and can lengthen time between lamp changes. (more…)
Failure to Maintain Tow Hook Latch Results in Bystander Death
March 27, 2020 12:02 pm Leave a Comment
An unfortunate and tragic case that we investigated involved a commercial “rollback” recovery truck that was being used to transport a four-wheel drive diesel pickup. The diesel pickup was not in running order with its’ engine in the bed of the truck. Consequently, a commercial towing company was hired by the truck owner to transport the truck. In the process of loading the truck onto the rollback, the truck came uncoupled from the winch and cable system. The truck then rolled down the inclined bed of the rollback, running over and killing a bystander. (more…)
Machine Guarding and Risk Assessment
August 19, 2019 9:00 am Leave a Comment
The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) “Top 10 for 2018” violations once again have Machine Safeguarding earning a position on the list. Machine safeguarding was the 9^th most cited standard as noted in the list below:
1. Fall protection, construction (29 CFR 1926.501)
2. Hazard communication standard, general industry (29 CFR 1910.1200)
3. Scaffolding, general requirements, construction (29 CFR 1926.451)
4. Respiratory protection, general industry (29 CFR 1910.134)
5. Control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout), general industry (29 CFR 1910.147)
6. Ladders, construction (29 CFR 1926.1053)]
7. Powered industrial trucks, general industry (29 CFR 1910.178)
8. Fall Protection–Training Requirements (29 CFR 1926.503
9. Machinery and Machine Guarding, general requirements (29 CFR 1910.212)
10. Eye and Face Protection (29 CFR 1926.102)
(Source: www.osha.gov/Top_Ten_Standards.html)

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Defective Vertical Baler Causes Serious Crush Injury to Operator’s Arm
January 29, 2019 5:08 pm Leave a Comment
I recently worked on an interesting case involving a box baler. An employee of a butcher shop put some empty cardboard boxes in a vertical box baler and pushed the control switch to compact the boxes. After the 30 by 60 inch platen weighing 851 pounds returned to its raised position, the employee reached into the open space above the bottom door on the baler and began to clear cardboard from the bale tie slots in the bottom of the raised platen. Suddenly, and without warning, the steel pin attaching the platen to the raised hydraulic cylinder rod failed. The heavy steel platen fell and crushed his arm which was outstretched over the baler door into the compaction space.

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Children Will Fall At Playgrounds. What Shall We Do To Protect Them? A Multipart Blog Series – Part III: An Overview of Selected Playground Safety Technologies
May 7, 2018 3:04 pm Leave a Comment
Welcome to the third and final post in our multipart series of blog posts about a young boy’s fall and serious injury at a public playground. In our first post we gave a brief overview of the incident and our investigation. In the second post we discussed some of the safety standards applicable to public playgrounds. In this post, we will examine some of the impact-absorbing playground surfaces available to protect children at playgrounds from injury. If you would like to read the first two posts, they are available here and here.
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Commercial Gas-Fired Cookers Can Do More Than Burn
August 29, 2017 10:00 am Leave a Comment
The first hazard that comes to mind when thinking about large scale ovens and steam kettles is burning or scalding injury. Carbon monoxide poisoning is just as dangerous but less understood, so oftentimes proper prevention methods are not followed. In the United States, this results in over 20,000 emergency room visits and over 400 deaths a year. Before we get to the case study and poisoning prevention methods, we need to know what CO is, where it comes from, and why it is poisonous. (more…)
Manufacturer Settles with Operator Injured by a Flying Tool Fragment from Milling Machine
September 29, 2015 1:23 am Leave a Comment
In my June 2015 blog, I discussed a personal injury case where the jury decided that the lack of interlocks on the covers of a swamp cooler did not render it defective, even though it was technologically feasible to do so and their existence would have prevented the amputation. Conversely, in another interesting personal injury case involving a computer numerically controlled (CNC) milling machine, a large settlement was made by the manufacturer with the injured operator because the machine did not have adequate interlocks on its enclosure doors. (more…)
Jury Claims Swamp Cooler is Not Defective; Interlocked Guards are Not Required
June 15, 2015 9:24 am Leave a Comment
An evaporative cooler, also known as a “swamp cooler”, is an air conditioner that works by evaporating water. A float valve keeps several inches of water in the bottom of the unit. A pump takes water from the pan to the top of a series of vertical pads made of absorbent materials like wood fibers. The water flows by gravity through the fiber pads. A fan pulls hot air from outside the house through the soaked pads. Water in the pads evaporates, cooling the air and increasing its humidity. The cooled and humidified air is blown back into the house. Evaporative coolers need to be cleaned periodically. (more…)

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