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Health and Safety News

Occupational health and safety news and guidance

Blog posts : "equipment"

Reducing accidents at work - it’s easier than it may seem!

In the past year alone (2014/15), approximately 1.2 million people suffered from a work related disease. To put it into perspective, that’s approximately 1 in 60 people. This is also equivalent to 27.3 million working days being lost because of work-related illnesses and injuries, or over £14 billio…

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The office: the dangers of un-serviced equipment

Photo shows an engineer testing equipmentWe’ve all seen the little green “Service by” sticker on the electrical equipment in and around the office, and let’s be honest, how many of those dates on the equipment have come and gone?

When anyone comes to work, we place utter trust in the employer to provide us with a safe environmen…

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Top 6 Grounding Site Dangers

Picture shows how to wire a UK plugIf your facility is not grounded correctly, both your employees and your equipment are at risk. Electricity will find a path to ground, and if a worker is the path of least resistance, they will receive an electrical shock. Depending on the current in the system, the shock could be anywhere from mil…

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Scaffolding safety: 5 scaffolding safety do’s

Photo shows a worker on scaffoldingThis blog explores the subject of safe scaffolding and focuses on 5 scaffolding do’s which ensure safety of a scaffolding work site. Read on for valuable information on how to maintain safety on site and ensure the wellbeing of workers and members of the public when scaffolding work is taking place.…

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How to avoid a worker's compensation claim on your construction zone

Photo shows a worker on a construction siteThe number of work related injuries, both in the UK and Australia, is quite high. In fact, 2012-2013 saw an estimated 646,000 work related accidents with 1/3 of those leading to three or more missed work days and another 1/3, seven or more missed days. While self-reported non-fatal injuries have fal…

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Burnley bakery fined after worker loses fingertips in pasty machine

Photo shows the pasty-making machine which caused the workers injuries

A Burnley bakery has appeared in court after an employee had the tips of two fingers chopped off by a pasty-making machine.

On 20 February, Tayyabah Bakery Ltd. was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an investigation found part of a metal guard had been deliberately removed…

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Hearing loss laws in the workplace

photo shows a work area with noisy equipmentEmployees who work in environments where loud noise is prominent have a greater risk of developing hearing problems compared to those who work in other sectors. Employers must adhere to regulations when their workers are involved in such work.

Employers must follow the Control of Noise at Work Regu…

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Cumbrian window firm fined over severed fingers

Photo shows the saw which severed a workers fingers

A Cumbrian manufacturer of wooden doors and window frames has been fined for safety failings after an employee's fingers were severed by a rotating saw.

The New West Port Corporation Limited, which trades as West Port, was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) following the incident…

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Pirelli in court over injuries at Carlisle tyre factory

Photo shows the machine which caused the workers injuries

Tyre manufacturer Pirelli has appeared in court after an employee sustained major injuries to his left arm when it became trapped in a tyre-testing machine.

The 57-year-old from Carlisle, who has asked not to be named, broke his arm in three places, was off work for four months and still has diff…

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Vauxhall owner sentenced over Ellesmere Port death

Photo shows area of factory where Ian Heard received injuries that led to his death

The owner of Vauxhall has been fined £150,000 over the death of a long-serving worker who was crushed in machinery at its car factory in Ellesmere Port.

General Motors UK Ltd. was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after Ian Heard was found at the North Road plant on 22 July 201…

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Tips for improving electrical safety in the workplace

Photo shows a high voltage warning signElectricity is such an integral part of everyday life that it is easy to forget how dangerous it can be. At home or at work, we use lights, computers and other appliances without a second thought – only questioning their safety when something goes wrong.

In the UK, more than 1,000 electrical inj…

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BAE Systems sentenced for death of worker

Photo shows the press frame resting on the rails between which Gary Whiting was found

Global defence company BAE Systems has been ordered to pay almost £350,000 in fines and costs after a worker died when he was crushed by the 145-tonnes weight of a metal press at its East Yorkshire plant.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), prosecuting, described the death of maintenance engi…

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Conder Allslade in court for safety breaches

The steel beam that struck the worker with the steel trolley, to the right, that it was sitting upon before it fell

A Portsmouth steel manufacturer has been sentenced after one of its workers suffered life-changing injuries when he was hit by a falling 1.4 tonne steel beam.

Conder Allslade was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for serious safety failings that led to the incident at its factor…

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Waste industry dangers highlighted in court

Metal fragmentiser

A Lincoln man suffered life-changing injuries because of a series of safety failings at the waste recycling plant where he worked in Scunthorpe, a court has heard.

The 25 year-old worker had his arm severed when he tried to clear a blockage on a conveyor forming part of a metal sorting line. The …

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Worker's hand injury puts Leeds food company in court

The workers hand injuries after treatment in hospital

A Leeds-based food company has been fined for safety failings after an agency worker had two fingers crushed by hydraulic rams in a sausage roll machine which had a broken guard.

The 26 year-old worker, from Halton, Leeds, was removing filling for pasties from a hopper on the machine at the Excel…

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Firms sentenced after factory worker finds brother dead

Two companies have been ordered to pay more than £450,000 in fines and costs for serious breaches of safety after a Stockport factory worker found his brother lying dead in the bed of a machine.

The machine that caused Brians deathThe Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Unisign and WFEL Ltd. after Brian Miller suffered fata…

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Firm fined after worker's hair ripped out by machinery

Kelly Nields hair after it was ripped out by machinery at Mainettis factoryA Deeside company has been fined £60,000 after a young worker was severely injured when her hair was ripped out by poorly guarded machinery.

Kelly Nield, 25, of Ellesmere Port, was sorting clothes hangers on a conveyor when her scarf and hair became caught in the chain and sprocket drive of the be…

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Machinery manufacturer prosecuted for safety failings

The trailer chassis which crushed Mr Makowskis legA Buckinghamshire farm machinery manufacturer has been fined after an employee sustained multiple fractures when a trailer crushed his leg.

Waldemar Makowski, of St Annes Road, Aylesbury, was building a farm vehicle trailer chassis at K Two Sales Limited in Haddenham, Buckinghamshire when the inc…

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Leigh cardboard company in court over crush injuries

A Leigh cardboard box manufacturer has appeared in court after one of its employees almost lost his right arm when it became trapped in a machine.

The 26-year-old from Leigh was trying to retrieve a piece of card to clear a blockage when his arm was dragged under a roller, causing severe cr…

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Yorkshire ice cream maker in court

A North Yorkshire ice cream manufacturer has been sentenced after a factory worker had his forearm broken when it got caught in a conveyor belt.

Sam Goodall, 20, of Northallerton, was working on the ice cream production line at R&R Ice Cream Ltd., in Leeming Bar, when his glove got caught a…

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20 Blog Posts