Adeyinka v. Yankee Fiber Control, Inc.

• Decision Date: 08 July 2008
• Docket Number: No. 05 Civ. 751(RJS).,05 Civ. 751(RJS).
• Citation: 564 F.Supp.2d 265
• Parties: Adebiyi ADEYINKA, Plaintiff, v. YANKEE FIBER CONTROL, INC., and Aqua-Dyne, Inc., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of New York

564 F.Supp.2d 265

Adebiyi ADEYINKA, Plaintiff, v. YANKEE FIBER CONTROL, INC., and Aqua-Dyne, Inc., Defendants.

No. 05 Civ. 751(RJS).

United States District Court, S.D. New York.

July 8, 2008.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Joshua Brian Irwin, Esq., and Gregory J. Cannata, Esq., New York, NY, for Plaintiff.

Thomas Francis Cerussi, Esq., William R. Fried, Esq., and Patrick Riggs, Esq., Cerussi & Spring, White Plains, NY, Christian D. Lofaro, Esq., Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin, New York, NY, for Defendants.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

RICHARD J. SULLIVAN, District Judge:

Plaintiff Adebiyi Adeyinka brings this diversity action against Yankee Fiber Control, Inc. ("Yankee Fiber"), and Aqua-Dyne, Inc. ("Aqua Dyne"), seeking damages under New York law for injuries he allegedly sustained while using a product manufactured by Aqua-Dyne and leased to his employer by Yankee Fiber. Specifically, Adeyinka asserts claims under New York law for strict products liability, failure to warn, negligence, failure to train and negligent entrustment. Yankee Fiber and Aqua Dyne have also asserted cross-claims against one another for contribution and indemnification.

Yankee Fiber now moves for summary judgment against plaintiff's claims and Aqua Dyne's cross-claims. For the following reasons, Yankee Fiber's motion is granted as to plaintiff's negligent entrustment claim and Aqua Dyne's cross-claim for contractual indemnification. Yankee Fiber's motion is denied as to plaintiff's and Aqua Dyne's remaining claims.

I. BACKGROUND

A. The Facts

The Court has taken the facts described below from the parties' respective Local Rule 56.1 statements of facts as well as the deposition transcripts and declarations submitted by the parties.¹ Upon consideration of a motion for summary judgment, the Court construes these facts in the light most favorable to plaintiff and Aqua Dyne, the non-moving parties. See Capobianco v. City of New York, 422 F.3d 47, 50 (2d Cir.2005).

1. The Parties

At all relevant times, Adeyinka worked as a lead abatement worker for the New York City Housing Authority ("NYCHA"). (Id. ¶ 2.) Yankee Fiber is a privately owned asbestos and lead abatement company. (Yankee Fiber's 56.1 Stmt. ("Yankee Fiber's 56.1") ¶ 1.) James Hutzler is the President and sole owner of Yankee Fiber, and manages the day to day operations of the company. (Id. ¶ 25; Hutzler Supp. Aff. ¶ 1.) Aqua Dyne manufactures high pressure water-jet equipment, including the device that allegedly caused Adeyinka's injuries. George Rankin is the President of Aqua Dyne. (Yankee Fiber's 56.1 ¶ 25.) Yankee Fiber leased the device to NYCHA. (Id. ¶ 29.)

2. The Water Jet

The device at the center of this litigation is an "ultra high pressure water jetting system" (the "water jet"), which is used to remove paint or grease from various surfaces. (Yankee Fiber's 56.1 ¶ 24; see Rankin Tr. at 20-21,²) The water jet is made up of several distinct components. One of these is known as the "mini scrubber," and is a hand-held attachment that is applied to the cleaning surface. The mini scrubber is attached to two additional components — the "ultra high pressure pump" and the vacuum pump. (See Hutzler Tr. at 93.) The ultra high pressure pump pressurizes water that flows through the mini-scrubber. The vacuum pump generates vacuum power to maintain suction in the mini-scrubber and to pull waste water back through the device. (See Hutzler Tr. at 93.) The water jet is intended to be run by three individuals: one person operates the mini-scrubber while two other individuals operate the controls that adjust the levels of water and vacuum pressure in the device.

In order to remove paint or grease from a surface, the operator of the water jet holds the mini-scrubber by its two handles and pushes it against the cleaning surface. (See Yankee Fiber's 56.1 ¶ 7; Mallinson Tr. at 106.) The mini-scrubber is held to the surface by vacuum pressure. (See Rankin Tr. at 57.) Once the mini-scrubber is placed against the wall and secured in place by vacuum pressure, the operator squeezes both of its handles simultaneously to trigger the release of pressurized water from the mini-scrubber's nozzles. (Id. at 58.) The pressurized water emitted from the water jet strips the paint or grease from the surface, and the waste water is then vacuumed back into the miniscrubber for storage in the water jet.

The vacuum pressure in the water jet is intended to be sufficiently strong so as to "keep[] the mini-scrubber on the wall, even without the operator holding it to the wall" (see Rankin Tr. at 57), and even as pressurized water is being released from the device (id.). However, the vacuum pressure only holds the mini-scrubber against a surface if the miniscrubber is actually in contact with that surface. (Rankin Tr. at 62.)

3. Yankee Fiber's Purchase of the Water Jet

Yankee Fiber purchased the water jet at issue in this case from Aqua Dyne in June or July 2002 for $64,795. (Yankee Fiber's 56.1 ¶ 24; Pl.'s 56.1 Stmt. Ex. 1.) However, the water jet used by Adeyinka included a vacuum pump that was not purchased from Aqua Dyne but, rather, was purchased separately and brought to the work site by Yankee Fiber. (See Mallinson Tr. at 40-41.)

Plaintiff and Aqua Dyne point out that "Yankee Leasing Corporation" (hereinafter, "Yankee Leasing"), and not Yankee Fiber, is listed as the purchaser of the water jet on the original purchase invoice. (See Christman Aff. Ex. I.) Yankee Leasing Corporation is not a party to this action. According to Hutzler, who is also the President and sole owner of Yankee Leasing, the company purchased the water jet from Aqua Dyne and then leased the device to Yankee Fiber, which, in turn, leased the water jet to NYCHA. (Hutzler Supp. Aff. ¶¶ 2, 5.) Hutzler describes Yankee Leasing as a "nonparty corporation in the business of acquiring equipment and leasing/renting of same only to" Yankee Fiber," and asserts that it has "never" leased "any equipment to any other person and/or entity except Yankee Fiber." (Hutzler Supp. Aff. ¶ 4.) Plaintiff and Aqua Dyne have failed to present any evidence indicating that Yankee Leasing rented the water jet, or any other product, to entities other than Yankee Fiber.

4. Yankee Fiber's Lease of the Water Jet to NYCHA

In 2001, NYCHA first approached Yankee Fiber regarding a lease of the water jet.³ (See Hutzler Tr. at 92; see also Yankee Fiber's 56.1 ¶ 40-41.) According to Hutzler, during his first meeting with NYCHA's representative, Raf Fletcher, Hutzler warned Fletcher that the water jet was "not a machine that anyone can pick up[,] it requires training." (Hutzler Tr. at 92.) Hutzler asserts that Fletcher then indicated that NYCHA already had employees that had "performed this work" and were "very heavily into ultra high pressure water jetting" during previous jobs. (Id.)

5. The Incident

Adeyinka was hired by NYCHA to perform lead abatement work in March 2003. (Yankee Fiber's 56.1 ¶ 2.) In the summer of 2003, Adeyinka was working on a NCHA project at the Manhattanville Community Center in Manhattan (the "work site"). (Id. ¶ 3.) Adeyinka's work consisted of using the water jet to remove lead paint from the walls of a building at the work site. (Id., ¶ 5-6.)

At approximately 9:30 a.m. on June 27, 2003, Adeyinka was using the water jet's mini-scrubber attachment while standing on a ladder in a closet at the work site. (Id. ¶ 20.) Specifically, Adeyinka was standing on the fifth step from the bottom of the ladder, approximately five feet from the ground, and using the mini-scrubber to remove lead paint from a cinder block wall. (Id.) At one point, according to Adeyinka, he placed the head of the mini-scrubber against the wall and depressed its handles in order to release the pressurized water. (Adeyinka Tr. at 182-83.) After approximately three minutes of operation, Adeyinka asserts that the "pressure" in the water jet "fluctuate[d]," causing the device to "lift itself from the wall" and to push back against Adeyinka.⁴ (Id. at 183.) Adeyinka asserts that, due to this "backward thrust," he lost his grip oh the mini-scrubber's handles, causing the device to rotate towards plaintiff and to spray hot water on his hand, causing severe injuries thereto. (Id.) Adeyinka also asserts that the backward thrust of the mini-scrubber and his reaction to the spraying hot water caused him to fall backwards off the ladder oh which he was standing.⁵ (See id. at 188.)

6. Problems with the Water Jet Prior to the Incident

Prior to the incident, Adeyinka had been working on the project for approximately two weeks. (Yankee Fiber's 56.1 ¶ 13.) During this time, plaintiff used the water jet on approximately four to five days. (Id. ¶ 14.) Adeyinka asserts that, prior to the day of the incident, he experienced several problems, including pressure fluctuations, while using the water jet at the work site. (Pl.'s 56.1 ¶ 17; see Adeyinka Tr. at 146-48.) Nevertheless, during that time, Adeyinka neither examined the water jet for warning labels, made any complaints to his supervisors or Yankee Fiber employees regarding the water jet's performance or problems related thereto, nor requested additional training from Yankee Fiber employees stationed at the site. (Yankee Fiber's 56.1 ¶¶ 11-12, 17-19.) However, according to Glen Swinney, a NYCHA supervisor at the work site, NYCHA employees other than plaintiff complained to Yankee Fiber employees at the work site, both prior to and on the day of the incident, that the pressure on the water jet would frequently fluctuate without notice. (Aqua Dyne's 56.1 ¶¶ 10-11; Swinney Tr. at 36-37.)

Following the incident, an inspection of the water jet failed to reveal any malfunctions or problems with the device. (Id. ¶ 53.) In addition, on June 30, 2003, after the project was completed at the work site, Swinney signed a "Project Sign-Off Sheet," wherein he certified that he had "inspected the work performed by Yankee Fiber" and that it was ...