Safety guarding failures lead to £80k fine

Preston-based company Bowland Country Feeds Limited (BCFL)has been fined after a 59-year old suffered serious hand injuries in a machinery incident.

Preston Magistrates’ Court heard that Kevin Hebblethwaite was employed as a mill operative for BCFL. On the 16 February 2016, Mr Hebblethwaite was carrying out a work related activity when his hand came into contact with rotating metal blades.

He suffered hand injuries that required amputation to parts of his index and middle fingers of his right dominant hand.

The Health and Safety Executive’s investigation found that BCFL failed to:

• ensure all machinery on site had the required level of safety guarding to prevent injuries to workers
• properly plan and identify the risks associated with moving parts of machinery that were not properly guarded.

Bowland Country Feeds Limited, formerly of Oakenclough Mill, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, and was fined £80,000 and ordered to pay costs of £5,689.46

Speaking after the hearing HSE inspector Leona Cameron said: “This incident could have easily been prevented had Bowland Country Feeds Limited taken the necessary action to ensure all moving parts of machinery had the required level of safety guarding in place, to protect workers operating the machinery.

“Mr Hebblethwaite suffered serious injuries due to BCFL’s failings. All workers have the right to return home from work safely and healthy; they should not be injured by the work they do.”

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In this episode of the Safety & Health Podcast, we hear from Matt Birtles, Principal Ergonomics Consultant at HSE’s Science and Research Centre, about the different approaches to managing the risks associated with Musculoskeletal disorders.

Matt, an ergonomics and human factors expert, shares his thoughts on why MSDs are important, the various prevalent rates across the UK, what you can do within your own organisation and the Risk Management process surrounding MSD’s.

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