Donald Lee TIPTON, Linda Tipton, his wife, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. BERGROHR GMBH-SIEGEN, a German Corp., Bergrohr GMBH-Herne, a German Corp., Defendants-Appellees, G.L. Rexroth GMBH, a German Corp., Defendant, S.E. "Siggy" Koehle and H.L. Goode, Third-Party Defendants., 965 F.2d 994

Summary

Plaintiff was standing near a "sizer" machine when a roller fell out and crushed his foot. Plaintiff filed an action against defendants for negligence and defective design and manufacture of the "sizer." Defendants filed a motion for summary judgment, alleging that they were in the business of making steel pipe, not selling or distributing "sizers," and that the "sizer" was only for the "in-house" sale of steel pipe. Plaintiff maintained that defendants were separate corporations and that the exchange of the "sizer's" design was a "sale." The district court granted summary judgment in favor of defendants, holding that there had been no sale of the "sizer" machine. The court affirmed the judgment, holding that summary judgment was appropriate as a matter of law against plaintiff, as there was not a reliable account of how the accident had occurred or what adjustments or alternations defendants could have made to ensure the safe operation of the "sizer" machine.