Packaging specialist fined for guarding failings 04 February 2014

Gosport-based food and drink packaging firm Huhtamaki UK has been fined £7,000 plus £3,088 costs after safety failings led to a long-serving worker losing a finger in an unguarded machine chain.

The UK operation was prosecuted under PUWER (Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998) by the HSE (Health and Safety Executive) after an investigation found that more could and should have been done to make the machine safe.

Portsmouth Magistrates' Court heard the injured worker was part of a two-man team feeding plastic sheets into the machine after a product change.

As he worked from the side of the machine to feed a sheet onto a chain that would draw it inside, his finger was caught between the chain and a roller.

HSE identified that had the feeding line been properly guarded to prevent access to dangerous parts, the incident could have been avoided.

The court was told that Huhtamaki UK failed to fully assess and identify the risks posed by the lack of guarding.

"Incidents of this kind are all too common in the manufacturing sector, and the onus is on employers to ensure appropriate guarding is in place at all times to protect workers," states HSE inspector Russell Beckett.

"The company had a previously good health and safety record, but on this occasion it fell below the minimum legal standards for safety and an employee was badly injured as a result," he continues.

"The spiked feed chain was easily accessible from the side of the machine, and it was a dangerous moving part that posed a clear risk."

Brian Tinham

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Health & Safety Executive

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