Cotton Press
Cotton Press : Incident type: Struck/crushed by falling upper beam. Brief Description of Incident: Five workers were operating a Continental Moss-Gordin Model 730 cotton press. During normal operation, two columns ("tie rods") broke when the press was exerting pressure to compact a cotton bale. The pressure launched the top pieces of the broken columns and the upper beam into the air. The 6,255 pound upper beam landed on and crushed one worker, killing her. Two other workers were hospitalized with injuries. Likely Cause of Incident: (a) Metal fatigue-when metal is damaged (e.g., cracks) as a result of repeated cycles of stress-within the press columns, failure may occur (See: Figures 1 and 2). (b) Fatigue failure occurs as a result of the number of cycles of normal operation and the amount of force applied. Often referred to as "cyclic stress failure," metal pieces subjected to a high number of repetitive cycles at moderate force are at risk of fatigue failure. Pieces subjected to a higher amount of cyclic force will fail after a lower number of cycles. (c) The press was manufactured in 1974 and had produced over 500,000 bales during its production life. (d) The fractures appeared inside of the columns (See: Figure 3, next page) and the columns were behind welded coverings; therefore, inspection of these locations was not possible without taking the press apart. Incident Prevention: To prevent future incidents, if you have a Continental Moss-Gordin Model 730 cotton press or a similar press: (1) Set up a maintenance schedule so that this type of equipment receives regular mechanical checks by a qualified person. This will likely involve taking apart and inspecting/testing the columns on the cotton press for metal fatigue. (2) Look for visible signs of fatigue failure. Signs could include a slight lengthening of the column or a rotation in place due to loosening of the nuts restraining the top bar of the press. (3) Check columns on the cotton press for metal fatigue using a non-destructive testing method such as ultrasonic testing and dye penetration testing. (4) Replace columns which show any indication of metal fatigue. (5) Do not allow workers to operate a cotton press until a qualified person first determines that there are no defects in the press columns. See more from topic source: https://www.osha.gov/html/a-z-index.html
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