A forging firm has been fined after a worker had to have fingers and a thumb amputated following an incident while he was operating a press at its Stourbridge site.

Wolverhampton Magistrates’ Court heard that on 25 June 2018 a forger at Brooks Forgings Limited had his left hand crushed between dies and moving parts on a press. Following hospital treatment his thumb, index finger and part of his middle finger had to be amputated.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the company had failed to ensure that effective measures were taken to prevent access to the dangerous parts, namely gripping dies and heading tool of the Samuel Platt Upset Forging Press.

Brooks Forgings Limited of Doulton Road, Cradley Heath, West Midlands pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998. The company has been fined £1,500 and ordered to pay costs of £2,511.11.

Speaking after the hearing HSE inspector Karen Sweeney said. “The installation of simple guarding mechanisms and a system of ensuring a safe system of work was in place would have prevented the forger from losing significant parts of his hand.

“Employers should make sure they properly assess and apply effective control measures to eliminate or minimise the risk from dangerous parts of machinery”.

Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. www.hse.gov.uk
2. More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: www.legislation.gov.uk/
3. HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk

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Farming partnership B A L Ackroyd has been sentenced for safety breaches, following a fatal incident involving a member of the public.

Leeds Magistrates’ Court heard that, on 22 February 2017, the deceased was struck by a telescopic loader being driven by farmer Anthony Ackroyd. The incident occurred at Waller House Farm in Wighill, Tadcaster when Mr Ackroyd was driving the JCB telescopic loader carrying three bales of hay on the front, severely restricting forward visibility. He could not see the deceased and drove over him, killing him instantly.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the deceased had been previously employed on the farm before his retirement, and lived in a cottage adjacent to the farm. He was a regular visitor to the farm, carrying out work such as gardening. In addition, Mr Ackroyd was carrying an employee of the farm who was standing on the mounting step of the vehicle in such a way that had he slipped off the step, he would have fallen directly under the wheels of the machine.

B A L Ackroyd of Waller House Farm, Wighill Park, Tadcaster, North Yorkshire pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) and Section 3 (1) of the Health & Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company has been fined £18,000 and ordered to pay £10,690 costs.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Julian Franklin commented: “This was a tragic and wholly avoidable incident. Drivers should ensure that they can always see in front of them or take equally effective precautions.

“Vehicles at work continue to be a major cause of fatal and major injuries; every year there are over 5000 incidents involving transport in the workplace. About 50 of these result in people being killed”

Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. www.hse.gov.uk^[1]
2. More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: www.legislation.gov.uk/ ^[2]
3. HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk^[3]
4. Please see the link below to the page on HSE’s website that is the best guide to doing it the right way:

http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg125.htm

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A Leicestershire based aluminium extrusion company has been fined after an employee suffered serious hand and leg injuries.

Leicester Magistrates’ Court heard how an employee of Boal UK Limited and 4 others were carrying out maintenance work to an aluminium extrusion machine. They were placing a new stem in place using a chain mesh sling. The injured person was operating the overhead travelling crane with a remote pendant. As the stem was being manoeuvred into position, it fell, striking him on his hand and leg. His injuries required surgical amputation to the tops of 3 fingers. He also suffered a fractured tibia.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that an unsafe system of work had been used. No risk assessment had been carried out of the work required to remove and refit the stem. It was also found that employees undertaking the work were inadequately trained.

Boal UK Limited of Ashby Road East, Shepshed, Leicestershire pleaded guilty to breaching Sections 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and have been fined £133,000 and ordered to pay costs of £6,346.30.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Michelle Morrison commented: “Those in control of work have a responsibility to devise safe methods of working and to provide the necessary information, instruction and training to their workers in the safe system of working.”

“Companies should be aware that HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate action against those that fall below the required standards”.

Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. www.hse.gov.uk
2. More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: www.legislation.gov.uk/
3. HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk

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An electromagnetic brake manufacturing company was sentenced today after a worker suffered serious injuries to her arm and hand when she became entangled in a spindle drilling machine.

Peterlee Magistrates’ Court heard that on 28 September 2018, Amy Howe, an employee of Stephenson Gobin Limited, was working at the company’s Bishop Auckland site. She was working on an adapted three spindle drill, used to manufacture parts for brake motors, when her gloved hand became entangled in the unguarded rotating spindle. Amy suffered serious injuries to her arm and hand including multiple fractures and the amputation of a finger. More than a year on from the incident the mother of two young children is still unable to return to work. She faces further surgery to both her hand and arm.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the company had carried out a risk assessment on the drill and had identified that there was a risk of entanglement on the rotating parts. However, it failed to provide guarding to the area and instead relied on employees to keep their hands away from the danger area. In addition, employees were not warned about the increased dangers of entanglement when wearing heavy-duty gloves of the type being worn at the time of the incident.

Stephenson Gobin Limited, South Church Enterprise Park, Bishop Auckland, County Durham pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and was fined £5,334 with £1,369.60 in costs.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Shuna Rank: “Companies should be aware that HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against those that fall below the required standards. In this incident a worker suffered and continues to suffer from serious, life-changing injuries which could have easily been prevented.”

For more information on this, please visit: http://www.hse.gov.uk/engineering/getting-started.htm

http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg229.pdf

Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. www.hse.gov.uk
2. More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: www.legislation.gov.uk/
3. HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk

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The number of injuries and incidents of ill-health in workplaces across Great Britain is still too high, new statistics show.

The annual report by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) includes statistics for work-related ill health, workplace injuries, working days lost, enforcement action taken, and the associated costs to Great Britain.

Figures show that around 581,000 workers sustained non-fatal injuries in 2018/2019, with 1.4 million workers suffering from work-related ill-health.

The statistics, compiled from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) and other sources, illustrate that in Great Britain in the 2018/2019 period there were;

• 147 fatal injuries at work
• 1.4 million working people suffering from a work-related illness
• 364 cases were prosecuted and resulted in a conviction; fines from convictions totalled £54.5 million
• 28.2 million working days lost due to work-related illness and workplace injury

The estimated economic cost to Great Britain totalled £15 billion in 2017/2018.

There have been no significant changes to industries in which there is a higher risk of sustaining an injury while at work, with construction and agriculture still amongst the high-risk sectors.

Despite Great Britain continuing to be one of the safest places to work, the reported figures highlight there are still areas to be improved upon to prevent fatalities, injuries and ill-health. The figures highlight the scale of the challenge HSE currently faces in making Britain a healthier and safer place to work.

In response to the report, Martin Temple, HSE Chair, said:

“Great Britain’s position as one of the safest places to work should be a point of pride for us all, but these figures show there is still much to be done to ensure workers go home both healthy and safe.

“These figures should highlight to us all the vital importance of managing risk and promoting behaviours to improve the standard of good health and safety practice in the workplace.

“We must all share the responsibility of ensuring everybody is aware of what they need to do to work right by preventing work-related incidents, and making our places of work healthier and safer for everyone.”

The full annual injury and ill-health statistics report can be found on HSE’s website.

Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. www.hse.gov.uk
2. HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk

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