KEY CONTAINER CORPORATION

According to U.S. Department of Labor enforcement records, KEY CONTAINER CORPORATION — a corrugated and solid fiber box manufacturing facility located at 21 CAMPBELL STREET, PAWTUCKET, RI 02861 — was the subject of a formal OSHA inspection that resulted in 32 citation(s) and cumulative proposed penalties of $40,110.80. The inspection case was opened on 2017-09-13.

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.

BLS Injury Data: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2022), this industry sector has an occupational injury rate of 3.3 per 100 full-time workers — 22% above the national average of 2.7. The sector fatality rate is 2.3 per 100,000 workers.

Industry Benchmark: The total penalty of $40,110.80 is more than 4.8× the national average of $8,414.32 for facilities in the Manufacturing sector (NAICS 322211). This sector encompasses 52,095 inspected facilities nationwide with aggregate penalties totaling $438.3M.

State Context: Within RI, this facility's penalty places it at the 99th percentile among 12,847 inspected facilities. The statewide average penalty is $2,361.85.

Citation Analysis: The inspection produced 32 citations spanning 5 distinct OSHA regulatory standards. The citation breakdown includes: 13 serious — A workplace hazard that could cause death or serious physical harm exists, and the employer knew or should have known about the condition. 2 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 September 9, 1991 with the latest abatement deadline set for March 24, 2004. Of the 32 total citations, 14 (44%) have been marked as abated in DOL records, which may indicate ongoing compliance gaps requiring further regulatory attention.

Penalty Assessment: The cumulative penalty of $40,110.80 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 $1,253.46 falls within the standard penalty range.

The inspection of Key Container Corporation’s Pawtucket facility revealed a pervasive and systemic breakdown of fundamental safety programs, evidenced by the staggering volume of 32 citations. The enforcement data highlights a critical failure in Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout) protocols under 1910.147, spanning procedural inadequacies, lack of periodic inspections, and insufficient training. For the workforce, these gaps represent a high-probability risk of catastrophic amputation or crushing injuries during routine machine maintenance or jam clearing—risks that are particularly acute in the corrugated box manufacturing industry where heavy rollers and high-speed cutting dies are standard. The concentration of violations across multiple standards, including machine guarding (1910.212) and means of egress (1910.36/37), suggests a reactive rather than proactive safety culture. While individual penalties remained relatively modest, the cumulative fine exceeding $40,000 and the sheer breadth of