A component engineering company in Cheltenham has been fined after an employee suffered head injuries on a machine that had a safety mechanism deliberately disabled.
Grzegorz Chylenski, 33, from Cheltenham, was working with a Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) machine at PG Components Ltd. at the time of the incident on 22 August last year.
On 21 May, Cheltenham Magistrates' Court heard that when Mr. Chylenski reached into the open CNC machine to retrieve a dropped component, he was struck on the head by moving parts, suffering a fractured jaw and cuts to his face and ear. The enclosed machine is fitted with a manufacturer's safety function that stops the machine running when its doors are opened. However, an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the safety mechanism had been disabled.
PG Components (Cheltenham) Ltd., of Unit 1B, The Runnings, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and was fined £11,200 and ordered to pay £2,777.60 in costs and compensation to the injured party of £2,500.