A company which manufactures wooden trusses has been fined after a worker sustained crush injuries.
Luton Magistrates Court heard how a worker suffered multiple fractures after a fork lift truck reversed into a stack of roof trusses which fell onto him. This led to the employee being pinned against his workbench which resulted in fractures to his knee cap and 14 ribs.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) into the incident, which occurred on 1 March 2017, found that the company failed to manage health and safety in three separate areas. The company failed to identify safe methods of delivering work materials inside the production areas, they did not provide suitable training and they did not supervise workers to ensure they worked safely.
Bartram Manufacturing Limited of High Road, Beeston pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company has been fined £82,000 and ordered to pay costs of £1,804.40 as well as a victim surcharge of £170.
After the hearing HSE inspector Emma Page said “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.
“If a safe system of work had been in place prior to the incident, the severe injuries sustained by the employee could have been prevented.”
Notes to Editors:
- 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
- More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: www.legislation.gov.uk/
- HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk
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