A firm in Staffordshire has been fined after one of its workers broke his arm a piece of unprotected machinery.
The incident occurred in January 2014 when 49-year-old Roger Small from Cannock was trying to repair a machine used by employees of Key Precision Ltd, also of Cannock. However, as he was dealing with the computer-controlled machine it suddenly started working, with Mr Small’s arm trapped by the machine’s internal arms. As a result of the incident, he needed to take several months off work. He now works for another company.
An investigation into the incident was launched by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) who found that the lock on the interlocked door had been defeated by a spare key kept on top of the machine, tricking the machine into thinking it was safe to operate. The HSE found that Key Precision Ltd had failed in its duty to sufficiently assess the risks associated with using the machine and didn’t have a robust system in place to monitor its use by employees.
Key Precision Ltd was last week (1st April) fined £8,000 along with costs of £1,180.38 by Stafford Magistrates’ Court after it pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.
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