OSHA proposes $321K fine for HBD/Thermoid, concluding second investigation in less than a year

BELLEFONTAINE, Ohio—For the eighth time since 2013, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has fined HBD/Thermoid Inc. for alleged safety violations.

In this latest instance, OSHA on March 26 proposed fines of $321,489 for 14 violations—one willful, 11 serious and two other-than-serious—at its factory in Bellefontaine. The alleged infractions are related to a lack of adequate machine guarding, electrical safe work practices, training, and lockout/tagout procedures to prevent sudden machine start-ups or movement.

"The lack of safety procedures throughout the HBD/Thermoid plant and the company's inaction shows that they remain indifferent to their obligation to protect their employees," said OSHA Area Director Todd Jensen, who is based in Toledo, Ohio. "For more than a decade, the company has jeopardized its employees' well-being by not making workplace safety and health a priority."

HBD/Thermoid declined comment for this story.

HBD/Thermoid is a manufacturer of industrial hoses, conveyor belting and duct materials for an array of applications and industries, including transportation, food processing and agriculture.

Based in Dublin, Ohio, HBD/Thermoid operates manufacturing facilities in Bellefontaine (just northwest of Columbus, Ohio); Chanute, Kan.; and Oneida, Tenn.

The U.S. Department of Labor initiated this most recent investigation at HBD/Thermoid in October 2023 following an employee complaint regarding "unsafe conditions."

At the same time this most recent investigation was opened, OSHA was in the process of investigating how a 25-year-old employee suffered severe crushing injuries at the Bellefontaine plant in June 2023.

OSHA concluded that inspection Dec. 20, 2023, by issuing two repeat violations and one willful-serious violation, one serious and one other-than-serious violation.

For those alleged safety failures, the agency assessed HBD/Thermoid $389,534 in proposed penalties.

The manufacturing firm in January announced its intent to contest the December 2023 citations.

As in the other OSHA cases, HBD/Thermoid has 15 business days from receipt (March 25) of these most recent citations and proposed penalties to comply; request an informal conference with OSHA's area director; or contest the findings before an independent OSHA review commission.

OSHA issued three total citations comprising 14 violations to HBD/Thermoid March 25.

The citation of greatest monetary and safety consequence is "willful-serious," with a proposed penalty of $161,323 and an abatement date of April 10.

"One or more methods of machine guarding is not provided to protect the operator and other employees in the machine area from hazards such as those created by point of operation, ingoing nip points, rotating parts, flying chips and sparks," OSHA stated in the March 25 notification.

The nine "subsets" within this violation include safety infractions regarding feeding rubber hose onto a rotating baler; cell baler nip points; and spinning reels in multiple different cells and production lines.

The 11 separate "serious" violations, all contained within the same citation, have proposed monetary penalties of either $16,131 (on six of them), or $12,676 (on the other five).

These violations concern established procedures for the application of energy control (lockout or tagout procedures); proper machine guarding; proper revolving drum, barrel and container guarding; exposed portions of horizontal shafting; openings in boxes, cabinets or fittings that were not "effectively closed"; a lack of approved covers for pull boxes, junction boxes and fittings; flexible cords not being connected to devices and fittings to prevent tension on joints or terminal screws; a lack of job training in safety-related work practices; and electrical and shock hazards for employees on production lines.

The two "other-than-serious" violations concern "listed or labeled electrical equipment" not being used or installed in accordance with instructions in the listing or labeling; and electrical equipment containing "broken, bent, cut or corroded parts."

The two "other-than-serious" violations do not offer a proposed penalty amount and also carry abatement dates of April 10.

The investigation that began in October 2023 and concluded March 25 is the eighth time the company has been investigated for safety issues at the Bellefontaine plant since 2013, according to OSHA.

In May 2014, at a HBD/Thermoid manufacturing location in Salisbury, N.C., that is no longer open, a worker was killed after being caught in an industrial machine.

An investigation begun in October 2014 by OSHA drew 11 safety violations (one "willful" and 10 "serious") totaling $134,000, according to OSHA records.

In this investigation, which concluded in May 2015, employees were found to be "in danger of amputation" because machines were not shut down properly before maintenance.

Less than a year after that investigation concluded, another worker, 27, suffered a serious injury when his arm was caught in a machine at the Bellefontaine location, an incident that occurred in February 2016, according to OSHA records.

OSHA issued a single "willful" citation and fine of $70,000 based on this investigation, a ruling that came down June 9, 2016.

"HBD/Thermoid is a repeat violator that continues to put workers at risk of amputations and serious injuries by ignoring safety rules for industrial machines used by workers who manufacture rubber hoses at the company's six facilities across the country," said Kim Nelson, then-area director of OSHA's Toledo office. "The company needs to take immediate action and fix these safety issues at its facilities. Employees and their families pay the painful price when companies don't follow standards to reduce injuries."