COLUMBIA FALLS ALUMINUM COMPANY

According to U.S. Department of Labor enforcement records, COLUMBIA FALLS ALUMINUM COMPANY — a industry sector 00 facility located at 2000 ALUMINUM DRIVE, COLUMBIA FALLS, MT 59912 — was the subject of a formal OSHA inspection that resulted in 70 citation(s) and cumulative proposed penalties of $45,810.00. The inspection case was opened on 1995-10-24.

The volume of citations issued during this inspection suggests systematic compliance deficiencies rather than isolated incidents. Facilities with 10 or more citations typically face comprehensive abatement requirements and may be subject to follow-up inspections.

State Context: Within MT, this facility's penalty places it at the 100th percentile among 9,480 inspected facilities. The statewide average penalty is $2,110.71.

Citation Analysis: The inspection produced 70 citations spanning 8 distinct OSHA regulatory standards. The citation breakdown includes: 7 serious — A workplace hazard that could cause death or serious physical harm exists, and the employer knew or should have known about the condition. 8 other-than-serious — The violation has a direct relationship to job safety and health but is unlikely to cause death or serious physical harm.

Enforcement Timeline: Citations were issued beginning October 11, 1991 with the latest abatement deadline set for July 6, 2008. Of the 70 total citations, 15 (21%) have been marked as abated in DOL records, which may indicate ongoing compliance gaps requiring further regulatory attention.

Penalty Assessment: The cumulative penalty of $45,810.00 reflects OSHA's gravity-based penalty calculation methodology, which considers the severity of potential injury, the probability of occurrence, the employer's size, good faith, and violation history. The per-citation average of $654.43 falls within the standard penalty range.

The 1995 enforcement action against Columbia Falls Aluminum Company revealed a deeply entrenched