Opinion ID: 1787936
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Bock Entitled to Judgment As a Matter of Law

Text: The uncontroverted evidence establishes that the Bock extractor was designed and manufactured in 1957 in accordance with techniques then common to manufacturers in the same industry, and that the machine worked satisfactorily for eighteen years after shipment to the original purchaser. [2] There was no evidence that the machine was defectively designed or manufactured at the time it left Bock's plant in 1957, or that it was unreasonably dangerous to the purchaser or user at that time. Neither was there evidence of any such dangerous condition at the time the extractor was purchased by Jenkins as a secondhand machine in 1968. Jenkins' testimony was uncontradicted that the machine, including the lid-locking safety device, worked satisfactorily from the day he purchased the machine until the accident on September 1, 1975. It is further undisputed that the lid-locking safety device failed to become engaged on the day of the accident because of deterioration and shrinkage of the rubber mounting pads due to long use, wear, tear and possible contact with a petroleum product during the intervening years. [3] The four rubber mounting pads on the bottom frame of the machine were to prevent vibration and noise. They had an original thickness of three-eighths of an inch. By September 1, 1975, after 18 years of use and without any known inspection or replacement as recommended in Bock's manual of instructions, one or more had shrunk one-eighth of an inch, thus lowering the super-structure so that the automatic lid-closing safety device did not go into operation. Strict liability as to Bock depends as a matter of law, not upon whether a defect in the machine existed on the date of the accident in 1975, but whether this machine (and any others of the same design) was unreasonably dangerous at the time it left Bock's plant in 1957. Henderson v. Ford Motor Co., 519 S.W.2d 87 (Tex.1974); Section 402A, Restatement of Torts 2d (1965). Paraphrasing Henderson, supra : The question is whether the Bock extractor, and all extractors of the same design, were unreasonably dangerous from the time of manufacture. Did some feature of the form or material or operation of the extractor threaten harm to persons using the extractor to the extent that any extractor so designed would not be placed in the channels of commerce by a prudent manufacturer aware of the risks involved in its use or to the extent that the extractor would not meet the reasonable expectations of the ordinary user as to its safety? The Bock extractor proved to be a safe machine so long as it was properly maintained. Section 402A does not make manufacturers liable for subsequent defects caused by normal wear and tear, misuse or failure of normal maintenance by the purchaser. Kuisis v. Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton Corp., 457 Pa. 321, 319 A.2d 914 (1974); Comment g., Section 402A, Restatement of Torts 2d (1965). In Kuisis, supra, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania said: ... The age of an allegedly defective product must be considered in light of its expected useful life and the stress to which it has been subjected. In most cases, the weighing of these factors should be left to the finder of fact. But in certain situations the prolonged use factor may loom so large as to obscure all others in a case.... Section 402A, supra, makes it quite clear that the seller or manufacturer is not liable when he delivers the product in a safe condition and subsequent mishandling, neglect, or failure to maintain, renders the product harmful or dangerous. This rule fits the undisputed facts of the present case. Bock warned in its manual of instructions that the rubber pads should be inspected yearly and replaced when necessary. Further, it placed a metal nameplate on the front of its extractor, which notified all subsequent owners as follows: Read instructions for operation and care of machine before using. A photo of this metal plate, showing the exact size, and a photo of the extractor, are reproduced herewith to show the prominence given to this notice concerning the instructions for operation and care of the machine.