Fatal Accident Caused by Office Chair During Noon Break

A typical case of death caused by an office chair explosion during a noon break was the death of a 14-year-old boy in Jiaozhou, Shandong, in 2009 due to a pneumatic chair explosion. The specific incident occurred on January 14, 2009, when a 14-year-old boy in Jiaozhou, Shandong, was adjusting a pneumatic chair, and the pneumatic rod suddenly exploded, with the top rod piercing into his body from the buttocks, causing excessive blood loss and death despite rescue efforts. Additionally, on November 26, 2007, a 68-year-old man in the Yantai Development Zone, Shandong, suffered severe injuries to his rectum, anal canal, and small intestine due to an explosion of a pneumatic lift chair, but death was not mentioned; in 2010, a woman in Xiamen was injured by an exploding lift chair but survived surgery.

The main reason for swivel chair explosions is the substandard quality of inferior pneumatic rods (gas springs). Specifically:

1. Thin tube walls: The wall thickness of inferior pneumatic rods is insufficient to withstand internal high pressure, making them prone to rupture during adjustment.
2. Impure inert gases or substitution with compressed air: Qualified pneumatic rods should be filled with high-purity nitrogen and other inert gases, while inferior products may be mixed with oxygen or directly use compressed air, causing the gas to expand upon heating and trigger an explosion.
3. Lack of explosion-proof steel plates: Explosion-proof steel plates are crucial components that prevent the top rod of a pneumatic rod from penetrating the seat cushion after an explosion. Inferior products often omit this design, causing the top rod to directly pierce into the human body during an explosion.

A spot check by the State Administration for Market Regulation revealed that quality issues with office chairs are widespread. In the 2020 spot check, the failure rate of office chairs reached 23.3%, with 17 batches being swivel chairs. The main problems were concentrated on the substandard high- and low-temperature resistance performance of the pneumatic rods and the lack of explosion-proof steel plates.

Preventive measures include:

1. Purchase products from reputable manufacturers: It is recommended to choose products priced above 200 yuan to avoid buying low-quality, inferior swivel chairs.
2. Check the smoothness of the pneumatic rod's adjustment: If there is stuttering or abnormal noise during adjustment, there may be quality issues with the pneumatic rod.
3. Confirm the installation of explosion-proof steel plates: Check whether an explosion-proof steel plate with a thickness of ≥2 millimeters is installed between the seat cushion and the pneumatic rod. This can be confirmed by checking the product manual or asking the merchant.