The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued multiple citations and a fine against Crystal Finishing Systems, a central Wisconsin aluminum fabrication company, in connection with the death of a worker last June.
Daniel Ollhoff, 51, was crushed between the hook of an automated crane and a dip tank at the company’s factory in Mosinee. Crystal Finishing now faces 10 citations for safety violations and a $171,000 fine, said OSHA spokesman Scott Allen.
“We firmly believe that this type of incident could have been prevented and this individual could still be living and enjoying the holidays with his family right now,” Allen said. “This man died tragically, and we believe it was completely preventable had this company, Crystal Finishing, followed all OSHA standards and regulations.”
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Crystal Finishing President Mark Matthiae said in a statement that “90 percent of the fines were unrelated to the accident” and that some of “the citations and penalties were overstated.”
Matthiae said it is not clear why the worker “was in the location of the machine at the time of the accident.” The company has 15 business days to contest the action.
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