Huber v. Niagara Mach. and Tool Works

• Decision Date: 21 October 1988
• Docket Number: No. C4-87-1725,C4-87-1725
• Citation: 430 N.W.2d 465
• Parties: , Prod.Liab.Rep.(CCH)P. 11,947 Bryan C. HUBER, Respondent, and Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, Intervenor, v. NIAGARA MACHINE AND TOOL WORKS and the Satterlee Company, Defendants, and Allen-Bradley Company, petitioner, Appellant.
• Court: Minnesota Supreme Court

Page 465

430 N.W.2d 465

57 USLW 2280, Prod.Liab.Rep.(CCH)P. 11,947

Bryan C. HUBER, Respondent and Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, Intervenor, v. NIAGARA MACHINE AND TOOL WORKS and the Satterlee Company, Defendants and Allen-Bradley Company, petitioner, Appellant.

No. C4-87-1725.

Supreme Court of Minnesota.

Oct. 21, 1988.

Syllabus by the Court

Defendant, a component manufacturer of a foot switch mechanism, had no duty to warn purchasers of the device, which was to be attached to a punch press manufactured by another company, that permanently attached safety mechanisms should not be removed.

Michael R. Cunningham, Minneapolis, for Allen-Bradley.

John W. Carey, Fairfax, for Bryan C. Huber.

James M. Riley, Minneapolis, for Niagara Machine & Tool Works & Satterlee Com.

Jeffrey M. Baill, Minneapolis, for Liberty Mut. Ins. Co.

Heard, considered and decided by the court en banc.

POPOVICH, Justice.

Bryan C. Huber brought this product liability action against the manufacturer (Niagara Machine and Tool Works) and distributor (the Satterlee Company) of a punch press, and Allen-Bradley Company, manufactuer of a foot switch mechanism used to operate the press. Huber alleged negligent design of the press and foot switch, breach of express and implied warranties, strict liability, and failure to warn of dangers associated with the use of the machine. At the hearing on a summary judgment motion, the plaintiff conceded that no issues other than the duty to warn were appropriate as to Allen-Bradley. Pursuant to Rule 54.02, Minn.R.Civ.P, the trial court granted summary judgment for Allen-Bradley, holding that Allen-Bradley did everything reasonably possible to make a safe product, any warning would have had little or no effect, and that the foot switch had been materially and significantly modified subsequent to its original design and manufacture. The Minnesota Court of Appeals reversed, holding Allen-Bradley had a duty to warn. Huber v. Niagara Machine and Tool Works, 417 N.W.2d 740 (Minn.App.1988). We reverse the court of appeals, and find Allen-Bradley had no duty to warn.

I.

On October 14, 1981, Bryan C. Huber suffered serious injuries to his hand while operating a Niagara Punch Press activated by an Allen-Bradley foot switch, both of which were owned by Huber's employer, R & M Manufacturing. At the time of the accident Huber had been working at R & M for less than two weeks, but had used this particular press before and had been instructed by his supervisor on its proper use. He also had been warned by his supervisor to keep his hands out of the die area of the machine while operating the press and had read and understood a warning sign on the front of the machine carrying a similar message.

At the time of the accident, Huber was conducting a metal bending operation which involved feeding a rectangular piece of metal into the press until it was lined up with pins at the back of the machine. Holding the metal with his hands outside the die area, Huber would activate the press by depressing the foot switch located on the floor in front of the machine. Having trouble getting the metal to lie flat in the press, since the pieces were badly warped, Huber put his hand in the die area of the press to straighten the metal. At the same time his foot slipped on the floor, which had become wet due to some metal washing activities, and came down on the treadle of the foot switch, activating the press.

The foot switch Huber was using had originally been manufactured by Allen-Bradley with protective safety devices on all sides. These devices included a shield on the sides and top and a front guard or spring-loaded door which the operator must flip back with the front of his foot before sliding it in to activate the treadle. The foot switch had been delivered to R & M Manufacturing for use with the punch press with all of these safety devices intact and permanently attached. However, sometime before the accident the front guard of the foot switch had been removed and was missing on the day of the accident.

II.

This case involves the issue of a component manufacturer's duty to warn users of its product that safety devices permanently attached to the product should not be removed and that extra safety precautions--which are the responsibility of the user's employer, not the component manufacturer--should be instituted.

III.

On an appeal from summary judgment, the role of the reviewing court is to review the record for the purpose of answering two questions: (1) whether there are any genuine issues of material fact to be determined, and (2) whether the trial court erred in its application of the law. Betlach v. Wayzata Condominium, 281 N.W.2d 328, 330 (Minn.1979). When reviewing a summary judgment, the reviewing court must view all evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. See Nord v. Herreid, 305 N.W.2d 337, 339 (Minn.1981).

Failure to warn is a cause of action separate from defective design. See Kallio v. Ford Motor Co., 407 N.W.2d 92, 99 (Minn.1987). We have held that determining whether a manufacturer has a legal duty to warn users of dangers related to the use of its product without safety devices is a question of law and therefore appropriate for this court to decide. Germann v. F.L. Smithe Machine Co., 395 N.W.2d 922, 924 (Minn.1986). Only if there is a specific factual dispute concerning a manufacturer's awareness of a risk should the issue be submitted to the jury for its resolution. See Lundgren v. Fultz, 354 N.W.2d 25, 28 (Minn.1984); Steenson, Products Liability in Minnesota--Design Defect and Failure to Warn Claims, 14 Wm. Mitchell L.Rev. 443, 483-86 (1988).

In Germann we set forth the standard for determining whether a manufacturer has a duty to warn:

[T]he court goes to the event causing the damage and looks back to the alleged negligent act. If the connection is too remote to impose liability as a matter of public policy, the courts then hold there is no duty, and consequently no liability. On the other hand, if the consequence is direct and is the type of occurrence that was or should have been reasonably foreseeable, the courts then hold as a matter of law a duty exists.

395 N.W.2d at 924. This standard requires a determination whether it was foreseeable to the manufacturer that the product would be used in a dangerous manner. There is no duty to warn of an improper use that could not have been foreseen. Frey v. Montgomery Ward & Company, 258 N.W.2d 782, 788 (Minn.1977).

Relying on our decision in Germann, plaintiff argues Allen-Bradley should have foreseen that the front guard on its foot switch would be removed. This case, however, differs significantly from the situation in Germann. In Germann, we held that a press manufacturer had a duty to warn operators of the danger of using its press without a properly attached and operating safety bar. 395 N.W.2d at 925. In determining foreseeability, we relied on the fact that the press was delivered by the manufacturer unassembled and the safety bar was removable. Id. The design of the press also required that the safety bar be periodically removed in order to service the machine. Id. It was inevitable that the safety bar would be removed at some time and the risk was high that it might not be...