To help organizations needing emergency safeguarding support services, Rockford Systems, a premier provider of machine safeguarding and combustion safety solutions, today announced the expansion of its RS360 workplace safety portfolio with a new emergency response service. Customers can schedule a remote or onsite assessment appointment for the same or next business day following an unplanned downtime incident or employee accident, depending upon the severity of the situation.

In manufacturing, the financial cost of downtime can be significant. Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG) estimates the average downtime lasts approximately 1.5 hours, while other studies suggest a higher average of three to four hours. Factoring in idle employees, lost production, equipment repairs, catch-up overtime, and potential fines and lawsuits, and other variables, calculations put the typical downtime costs to industrial manufacturers between $30,000 and $50,000 per hour.

Machine accidents are a reality for manufacturers across all industries, one that results in the loss of lives, numerous injuries, and millions of dollars in fines paid to the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) each year. The vast majority of machinery accidents are related to safeguarding deficiencies that prompt the issuance of an OSHA Citation. This legal notice typically includes a list of violations and proposed penalties, along with a short timeframe for the company to abate each cited violation or face additional fines.

The new Emergency Response Assessment service is specifically designed for customers that need immediate safeguarding help following a serious incident involving a machine or when a critical production process has been shut down. It gives customers access to Rockford Systems' safeguarding specialists, all of whom have extensive experience in CFR OSHA 1910, ANSI B11 series standards, and NFPA 79/70E compliance. Rockford Systems will quickly identify all safeguarding needs that require remediation and what OSHA safeguarding compliance gaps are to be filled.

In 2018 alone, OSHA issued 1,969 safety citations for machine guarding deficiencies. Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act), once OSHA has issued a citation for an alleged violation of the OSH Act, the employer has only fifteen working days to contest the citation, penalty amount, and/or abatement period. However, OSHA officials may grant companies time extensions and a 20 percent penalty reduction if it has demonstrated "Good Faith" efforts, such as hiring an outside expert to conduct an emergency response assessment. 

Matt Brenner, Vice President of Machine Safeguarding Solutions at Rockford Systems, commented: "Rockford Systems is dedicated to meeting the safety requirements of its customers. Our new Emergency Response Assessment offers organizations that have a situation that requires a rapid response to mission-critical guarding solutions and OSHA intermediary services, with the same comprehensive support and reporting as our traditional onsite assessments."

Upon completion of the Emergency Response Assessment, Rockford Systems provides customers with a quick-turn, high-quality, comprehensive safeguarding report and proposal that outlines findings, suggesting ways to reduce risk and become compliant. Professional recommendations are provided in the areas of guards, devices, awareness barriers/devices, safeguarding methods and safe work practices, all referencing applicable OSHA regulations and ANSI/NFPA standards.

For more information on the Emergency Response Assessment, visit www.rockfordsystems.com/emergency-response/.