Prosecutions

A Staffordshire company appeared in court last week (14 July) after one of its workers had part of a finger amputated while working on a rubber conveying machine.

The 49-year-old employee, who does not want to be named, was injured while working on 6 July 2009. He was loading large fabric bags containing rubber into a hopper for distribution around the factory.

During the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecution, Newcastle-under-Lyme Magistrates Court heard the employee had been using a machine that had been modified when the incident occurred.

The company had previously replaced a fixed guard with an incorrectly fitted interlocked guard, meaning the worker was able to access the screw conveyor where his right hand was subsequently caught, causing serious injury.

The man was taken to hospital where surgeons had to amputate his middle finger past the first knuckle. His ring finger was also damaged.

The company pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998. It was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £4,000 costs.

A HSE Inspector commented:

"This incident would have been prevented had the guarding on the machine been fitted properly, or if there had been adequate systems in place to detect the failed guard before the accident.

"The fixed guard had been replaced with an incorrectly fitted interlocked guard meaning this was an incident waiting to happen.

"This man sustained serious injury and he was lucky that it was not worse."