Six willful, egregious citations were issued for inadequate machine guarding over the blades of slitter machines. The citations are being issued as willful because the company certified abatement for machine guarding on much of this equipment in 2009 and had a history of machine guarding violations in the past. OSHA also found that the company knowingly continued to violate agency requirements each time the machinery was placed in operation. A seventh willful citation was issued for lack of machine guarding over nip points and rotating parts on feed tables that was also cited in 2009. Lack of machine guarding exposes operators to amputation hazards of the hands and fingers, which may enter the danger zone during machine operation. Three repeat safety violations were cited for failing to provide fire extinguisher training to employees; provide machine guarding to protect operators from rotating parts, nip and pinch points in machine areas; and to guard the blades at two mechanical guillotine shears. CLICK HERE to see the full news release and copies of the citations at OSHA.gov