A metal manufacturer has been fined after a worker was injured unblocking jammed machinery.
The employee was operating an electromagnet to sort scrap casting from a vibro-charger machine. The magnet itself became stuck to the vibro-charger. In trying to free the machines, the vibro-charger was lifted off its running rails – it swung and struck the worker.
Risk Assessment
An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive found:
- The jamming of the vibro-charger was foreseeable.
- Operatives had developed their own approach to dealing with jams.
- The jamming issue had never been fully identified by managers – so no specific risk assessment had been carried out.
Eurac Poole Limited pleaded guilty to breaking the Health & Safety at Work etc Act 1974.
It was fined £60,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,642.
Entirely Foreseeable
The HSE say the incident could easily have been prevented and was “entirely foreseeable”.
It said the “risk should have been identified at a management level”.
As an employer, you must make sure you properly assess and apply effective safe systems of work that deal with machinery blockages.
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