A and L Furnishings fined after amputation caused by unguarded woodworking machine

Furniture manufacturer, A and L Furnishings Ltd, was fined £19,500 (inc.costs) after an employee was injured whilst operating unguarded machinery.

The circumstances were:

• The accident occurred on a horizontal drilling machine.
• There was no guard preventing access to rotating drill bits.
• On 19 March 2018, an employee was using a horizontal drilling machine to make parts for a chair.
• The fingers of his left hand came into contact with unguarded counter-rotating drill bits and became entangled. 
• The incident caused extensive damage to his left hand, resulting in the amputation of two fingers.

The HSE inspector said:
“The dangers of unguarded machinery are well-known. If A and L Furnishings Ltd had ensured that suitable guarding was in place, then this incident would have been avoided. Companies should be aware that HSE will not hesitate to take enforcement action when the required standards are not met.”

IODS Pipe Cad Limited was fined £60,000 following death caused by unsafe lifting practice.

Engineering company  IODS Pipe Cad Limited was fined £60,000 following the death of an employee who was struck on the head by a wooden bearer in the yard of a fabrication workshop.

The circumstances were:

• On 7 September 2017, James Longair was helping a colleague who was operating a side loader.
• Pipes were being moved from one part of the yard to another by lifting the pipes on the forks.
• The work method used to lift and move the pipes was unsafe.  
• There was no method to secure the pipe on the forks when lifted.
• This meant that, should a pipe begin to roll along the forks, the operator had no control over it
• The men decided that the pipe should be lifted at one end using the side loader. 
• Once the pipe had been lifted at one end it rolled off the forks and struck the deceased on the leg before falling onto a wooden bearer. 
• This sent the bearer into the air, striking Mr Longair on the head. 

The HSE inspector said:

“This tragic incident could so easily have been avoided by simply carrying out correct control measures and safe working practices. Companies should be aware that HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against those that fall below the required standards.”

Director given suspended sentence for severe injury caused by defective lorry crane

Hafeez Ghafoor, formerly a director of the now-dissolved landscaping company R K United Ltd, was given a suspended sentence for safety breaches after a worker suffered life changing injuries.

The circumstances were:

• On 25 August 2016, an employee of R K United Ltd was using a lorry loader crane.
• The crane had severe defects, including a disabled safety system, 
• Part of the safety guard around the controls had been cut off, leaving a protruding spike. 
• In addition, the worker had not received appropriate training to operate the lorry loader crane.
• As he brought the crane arm down, his left arm was impaled on the spike.. 
• The impact caused several bones in his arm to be shattered.

 

The HSE inspector commented: 

“This injury was easily preventable, and the risk should have been identified. The lorry loader crane should have been properly maintained, regular inspections carried out, and a thorough examination taken place every twelve months. The disabled safety system would have been found during the examination, ensuring that this incident could not have occurred.”

Braithwaite Engineers fined after fall from lorry

Braithwaite Engineers Limited, a manufacturer of steel water storage tanks and supporting towers, was fined £10,080 (inc.costs) after a worker suffered multiple fractures following a fall from height.
The circumstances were:

• The company failed to provide employees with suitable and clear instructions and training when working on lorry beds.
• On 25 October 2017, an employee was injured when he fell from a lorry bed whilst unloading the lorry at their site.
• He sustained multiple fractures to his head, ribs, shoulder blade and fingers. 
• This caused him to miss over five months of work

The HSE inspector said:
“Falls from vehicles can be overlooked by employers when considering risks from work at height. Simple measures would have prevented this accident.”

Siddall and Hilton Products Ltd fined £20,831 for accident during fault-finding

Manufacturing company Siddall and Hilton Products Ltd was fined £20,831  (inc.costs)for safety breaches after a worker suffered severe crush injuries while fault finding on a mesh welding machine.

The circumstances were:

• The accident occurred when fault-finding on a welding machine.

• There were no robust isolation procedures as part of a safe system of work for entry into and out of the machine’s hazard zones.

• To identify a faulty wire on the machine, the worker opened the interlocked gate which stopped the machine.

• He then climbed on top of the PV (the part of the machine that creates the mesh from the welded materials).

• To release the wire the weld head needed to be lifted.

• To do so, his colleague restarted the machine.

• As the machine was in automatic rather than manual mode, the PV immediately continued travelling towards the weld head, trapping the worker’s lower left leg. 

• He suffered double compound fractures of his tibia and fibula. 

• He was taken immediately to hospital where he had surgery and has since required further surgery to fuse his ankle in November 2018

The HSE inspector said: 

“Maintenance and breakdowns are often the most hazardous and poorly controlled area of work.  If a suitable safe system of work had been in place prior to the incident, the life changing injuries sustained by the employee could have been prevented.  Companies should be aware that HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against those that fall below the required standards.”