Lemon Groundwork Solutions fined £135,589 after injury due to unsafe stacking

Steel fabrication company Lemon Groundwork Solutions Limited was fined £135,589 (inc.costs) after steel cages fell onto a worker’s leg, resulting in multiple fractures.

The circumstances were:

• Lemon Groundwork Solutions Limited had previously been served Improvement Notices regarding the safety of its lifting operations and the management of vehicles and pedestrians in its yard.
• The company was previously fined £100,000 following an incident in 2016 in which an employee was struck by a bundle of steel rebar that fell off a forklift, causing multiple fractures to his leg.
• This accident related to stacking of steel cages.
• These steel cages were free-standing on the floor, each weighing 1188kg, and were stacked between 2-4 cages high in an unstable pyramid formation, without chocks to support the load. 
• The task of stacking cages was not adequately risk assessed.
• Lemon Groundwork Solutions Limited failed to implement a safe system of work for storing cages 
• They had not provided their employees with sufficient information, instruction, training and supervision to store and handle cages safely. 
• They had  failed to determine the maximum height that the cages could be stacked and suitable means to secure the cages to prevent movement and collapse. 
• in November 2017, an employee was using a gantry crane to lift a steel cage from a stack of cages.
• When the employee used the gantry crane to lift the top cage from the stack, two cages at the bottom rolled onto his left foot and leg, fracturing his tibia and fibula bones. 
• As a result, the worker had to undergo reconstructive surgery where metal rods, plates and pins were inserted into his leg.

The HSE inspector said:
“This incident could easily have been prevented if the company had adopted safe control measures for storing and handling cages, and adequately supervised the task. Companies should be aware of the risks of handling metal stock, and that it should always be stored and stacked so it is not likely to move, fall and cause injury.”