Treforest Car Parts Company fined £100k following worker’s death

Posted by Now Cardiff on Jun 20, 2011

An engineering company has been fined £100,000 after a worker was crushed to death at a factory near Pontypridd.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Melloy Limited after shift co-ordinator Paul Thorngate, 44, was crushed by a falling crate of aluminium car parts, while working overtime at the company’s Treforest Industrial Estate premises.

The father-of-three from Porth was working alone in the heat treatment area of the factory on the evening of 10 November 2006, but was fatally injured when the wire rope hoist that was supporting a suspended crate of parts failed, causing it to fall upon him.

Cardiff Crown Court heard that Mr Thorngate, who had worked for the company for 27 years, was one of several men who would work overtime at weekends or nights as a lone worker.

On the night of the incident, a metal basket containing aluminum brake parts was being hoisted into a furnace for high temperature treatment. The crane raised and lowered its cargo by extending and shortening a wire rope. However, Mr Thorngate was killed when the rope supporting the weight snapped, and the basket landed on top of him.

The court heard that after the company relocated to Treforest in May 2005, the hoist mechanism was reassembled at the new premises. The HSE investigation found the firm failed to ensure the hoist was examined by a qualified specialist after reassembly, and was done without first conducting a suitable risk assessment.

Following the incident, it was discovered that the wire rope had broken, as it had been seriously damaged from rubbing against the frame. The safety devices on the hoist were also incorrectly adjusted.

Melloy Ltd of Treforest Industrial Estate in Pontypridd, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 9(2)(b) of the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998, Regulation 3(1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

The company was fined £100,000 and ordered to pay costs of £75,000.

Mr Thorngate’s partner, Jayne Beer, said:

“Words cannot describe how much of a gap Paul’s death has left in all our lives. He was a vibrant and fun-loving person and he was much-loved by friends, family and colleagues. His untimely death has devastated all that knew him, including his children and four brothers.

“He was dedicated to his job and worked hard to make sure his work was completed to the highest standard. If only his employers had had the same attitude and work ethic then perhaps in a different life Paul would still be with us today.”

HSE inspector, Janet Viney said:

“This tragic incident that has left a family without a father could have been easily prevented had the failed hoist been thoroughly examined when it was moved from one factory to another.

“If a competent person had examined the hoist, the changes which were made to accommodate its new position would have been recognised and the safety mechanisms would have been adjusted.

RWE npower and contractor AMEC fined half a million pounds after death fall at Aberthaw

Posted by Now Cardiff on Jun 13, 2011

Energy giant, RWE npower and contractor AMEC Group Ltd must pay a total of £510,000 after a maintenance worker fell to his death at a South Wales power station.

The firms were sentenced over the incident that saw agency worker Christopher Booker from St Athan, fall around 12 metres through an unprotected opening in a platform at Aberthaw Power Station in the Vale of Glamorgan on the evening of Sunday 10th June 2007.

Cardiff Crown Court heard that work was being carried out to insert equipment into a large deep pit in the water cooling system to hold back the seawater when the tide rose. Sections of the floor gratings at the top of the pit had been removed to allow the work to proceed.

Mr Booker was working with eight other workers who had been called in to carry out urgent modification work on the equipment in order to ensure an effective seal of the pit.

The unguarded opening through which Mr Booker fell

As the natural light faded, electric lights were turned to face those doing the grinding work which left the top of the pit in near darkness. Mr Booker fell through the opening in the walkway to the floor below. He died of multiple injuries to his chest and pelvis.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) showed that a large opening in the walkway was left unprotected after the floor gratings had been removed, and inadequate precautions had been taken to protect people working near it.

The investigation also identified that there was confusion and misunderstanding between RWE npower and principal contractor AMEC Group Ltd as to who was responsible for controlling the work at the time of Mr Booker’s death.

RWE npower Plc, of Windmill Hill Business Park, Whitehill Way, Swindon, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. Today at Cardiff Crown Court, they were fined £250,000 and ordered to pay £30,000 costs.

The principal contractors, AMEC Group Ltd, of Booths Park, Chelford Road, Knutsford, Cheshire, pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 11(1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. They were fined £200,000 with costs of £30,000.

After the hearing, HSE Inspector Caroline Bird said:

“This tragic case highlights the consequences of failing to do something as simple as adding protection to an opening in a walkway.

“Inadequate planning and a poor choice of safety control measures meant that a very obvious hazard remained.

“Both companies had a duty of care to Mr Booker that they failed to meet – with catastrophic consequences. This awful incident could so easily have been prevented had the correct safety measures been taken.

“Employers have a duty to manage the risk of falls from height, including providing protection around the edge of openings. It is completely unacceptable this sort of risk was not managed.”