Sister companies and the machine manufacturer were fined after finger amputation.

Postpack Limited and Damasco UK Limited were each fined £5,152 (inc.costs) and DIG Corrugated Machinery Limited fined £10029 (inc.costs) because of an injury resulting in amputation.

The circumstances were:

• Postpack and Damasco are sister companies.
• DIG Corrugated Machinery had supplied 5 flat bed die cutting machines, all with inadequate guards.
• A worker using one of these machines caught  his hand under the rotating main roller.
• The fingers and thumb of his left hand were crushed, leading to their amputation.
• Postpack and Damasco were fined under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations. .
• DIG Corrugated Machinery Limited were fined under Section 6 of the Health and Safety at Work  Act.

The HSE inspector commented:
“Those supplying machinery have a duty to ensure that it is safe. Purchasers and users of machinery must assess the equipment that they purchase and ensure that it is adequately guarded and that they have appropriate safe systems of work in place. If the flat-bed die cutter had been adequately guarded, then the life changing injuries sustained by the employee could have easily been prevented.”