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Products Liability Keyed to Fischer, 6th Ed.
Whitaker v. T.J. Snow Co.
Citation:
151 F.3d 661 (1998)Facts
In 1988, Walker Manufacturing Company contracted with T.J. Snow Company to upgrade the electrical circuits of a catalytic converter seam welder that had been manufactured by RWC, Inc. in 1979. Walker specified all equipment to be used in the project, and Snow’s shop order explicitly stated that “the basic welder is not to be rebuilt.” Snow performed the requested modifications, which included adding a programming unit, installing new water and air circuits, and adding a weld control. The work cost $61,065, compared to approximately $100,000 for a new seam welder. Although Snow typically inspected machines for compliance with safety regulations, it failed to install guards on the machine’s pinch points or warn Walker about this deficiency. On September 18, 1993, Whitaker, who had been employed at Walker for only six days, was injured when her hand was caught in a pinch point while she was attempting to remove metal beads from the welder’s wheels as instructed by her supervisors.
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