Workers at an Ohio boiler manufacturer were required to operate press brakes and a horizontal boring machine from which the machine guarding had been deliberately removed, according to OSHA investigators, who issued two willful citations for the hazard.

Howard Eberts, the agency’s area director in Cleveland, said Gaspar, Inc. was previously cited for the hazard, then it removed the protections it had installed.

Machine guarding protects workers from lacerations, caught-in and amputation hazards.

OSHA last inspected the company in 2011 and cited the same violations. Gaspar had provided documentation showing that guarding had been installed on the equipment. OSHA's latest investigation found the company had removed the installed guarding.

Due to the violations found at the site, the company has been placed in OSHA's Severe Violator Enforcement Program, which mandates targeted follow-up inspections to ensure compliance with the law. Under the program, OSHA may inspect any of the employer's facilities or job sites.

The current citations can be viewed at http://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/Gaspar_9390870_0226_14.pdf*.