Melba Products fined £130,000 after employee's finger was severed in unguarded blender

Plastics manufacturer, Melba Products Limited, was fined £130,387 (inc. costs) after an employee’s finger was severed due to inadequately guarded machinery.

The circumstances were:

• The accident occurred on the hopper/blender of a blow moulding machine.
• Melba Products Limited failed to carry out a risk assessment of the blender. 
• They had failed to put in place appropriate control measures to prevent access to dangerous parts 
• They had also failed to implement a suitable system of training and supervising of new starters.
• The injured employee had only been operating the machine for one week prior to the incident.
• The blender had not been sufficiently guarded to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery. There was a large gap of approximately 4 x 5 inches towards the top of the hopper guard.
• On 5 November 2018, the 36-year-old employee of Melba Products Limited had been refilling the hopper of a blow moulding machine with plastic granules from bags.
• Work gloves that had been inside one of the bags fell into the hopper and through the guard. 
• Whilst reaching through a large gap in the top of the hopper guard to retrieve the gloves, his middle finger contacted dangerous parts of the blender.
• This resulted in it being severed down to the knuckle of his second finger.

The HSE inspector said:
“This injury was entirely preventable and could have been avoided by ensuring the machine was being operated safely, with a suitable guard in place. Adequate supervision should also have been in place to ensure the machine was being used safely by newer operatives. Employers should make sure they properly assess and apply effective control measures to minimise the risk from dangerous parts of machinery.”

VSMPO Tirus fined £200,000 for failure to provide support for material being cut which allowed 1.5 tonnes of material to fall onto an employee's leg.

Titanium supplier VSMPO Tirus Limited was fined £207,293 (inc.costs) after an employee sustained multiple fractures to his leg because of a failure to support material being cut.

The circumstances were:

• On 20 September 2017, an employee was cutting titanium on a metal cutting band saw.
• The sheets being cut were significantly larger than the machine bed.
• VSMPO Tirus had failed to suitably and sufficiently assess the risk of material falling from the machine bed.
• They had failed to put in measures to control the risk.  An extension to the machine bed or stanchions with back stops would have prevented the material from falling from the machine bed.
• Almost 1.5 tonnes of titanium plate fell from the bed the band saw trapping the employee's leg underneath.

The HSE inspector added:
“A simple, cost-effective solution could have prevented this horrendous injury.”

Failure to isolate machines caused arm injury and £200,000 fine

Chemical company, Reckitt Benckiser Healthcare (UK) Ltd (Reckitt Benckiser Ltd), was fined £208,261 (inc.costs) after a worker had his left arm crushed in a bottle filling machine.

The circumstances were:

• On 9 September 2017, the worker was carrying out a recalibration task.
• The machine had not been isolated.
• The machine caused a crush injury to his left forearm.
• He also sustained tendon damage to the forearm, wrist and hand.

The HSE Inspector said: 
“Non-routine maintenance tasks must be carried out by trained personnel working to standard safe operating procedures."