(United States) Federal inspectors have found a Syracuse iron foundry, operating for more than 150 years, continued its pattern of violating federal regulations. The foundry has been cited for more than two dozen willful, repeat, serious, and other violations.
Inspectors with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Frazer and Jones LLC in October 2024 for exposing employees to the risks of fire and explosion, thermal and chemical burns, falls, and other hazards.
In 2023, OSHA cited Frazer and Jones, operator of one of the nation’s largest ductile and malleable iron foundries, for two serious violations. In 2021, the company reached a settlement agreement with the department and agreed to correct 60 violations and pay $276,189 in penalties identified in a 2019 inspection.
OSHA cited the foundry operator for four willful, 13 repeat, seven serious, and three other-than-serious violations and assessed penalties set by federal statute, totaling $990,186 in proposed fines.
Specifically, inspectors found Frazer and Jones exposing employees to the following hazards:
- Fire and explosion from uncapped natural gas vent lines during industrial furnace maintenance.
- Struck-by injuries while operating cranes, hoists, and lifting devices with identified deficiencies.
- Falls from walking and working surfaces not protected by guardrails.
- Asphyxiation from hazardous atmospheres for workers entering the kiln, a permit-required confined space, for maintenance.
- Caught-in dangers from failing to lock-out energy sources before machine maintenance.
- Thermal burns while lighting burners with a natural gas torch.
- Chemical burns while using hazardous chemicals without labels and emergency eyewash stations inaccessible to employees working with corrosive chemicals.
- Overexposure to respirable crystalline silica without engineering controls or respiratory protection.
Frazer and Jones LLC has contested its citations and penalties to the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
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