Coquitlam metal fabrication company fined $22,317 after WorkSafeBC inspection

A metal fabrication business on Schoolhouse Street in Coquitlam was fined after a WorkSafeBC inspector documented several infractions, including high-risk violations. The shop does tool and die fabrication as well as metal stamping. According to the inspection report, a worker was cleaning a punch press that had not been turned off. The report said the worker was using compressed air and their hands while the machine still had pneumatic and electrical power.

The inspector also observed a welder using substandard eye protection and another worker not wearing a seat belt. One worker welding without a half-face respirator was using what the report described as a “snorkel type” fume extraction unit. It was about one foot from the workpiece and made of hose and something that looked like a heating register vent.

The inspector documented machines, including grinders, with their safeguards removed; a crane with no rated capacity marked on its superstructure; and numerous rigging problems. The report said workers were using rigging without a working load limit, some of it was damaged, and all four hooks observed for rigging a steel plate were missing.

WorkSafeBC said the company repeatedly failed to ensure safeguards were not “intentionally removed, impaired, or rendered ineffective.” The total fine was $22,317. The company subsequently complied with the rules for each infraction.