Concrete manufacturer fined following HSE investigation

A company that manufactures concrete panels has recently been fined following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

Unbrako Precast Concrete Limited was fined £26,000 and ordered to pay the costs of £2,579 by Nottingham Magistrates Court, after pleading guilty to health and safety breaches.

In August 2014, a worker had been injured while working with concrete units. The contractor had been loading the concrete panels, which were free standing, onto his vehicle. A sideloader was being used for the job. Whilst removing a lifting shackle from the top of the concrete panels, an attachment fell from the sideloader's forks, hitting the worker and causing him to be knocked off the vehicle. During this incident, the worker suffered two broken ribs, fractured shoulders and a broken collarbone.

The HSE conducted an investigation following the incident, discovering that there was no suitable safe system of work or risk assessment in place. Employers are required to carry out risk assessments to make sure that all necessary procedures are put in place to prevent illness or injury, including the use of PPE where necessary.

The company, from Langar in Nottinghamshire, pleaded guilty a breach of Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, and also Regulation 3 of Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. According to Lindsay Bentley, HSE Inspector, the worker should never have been on the trailer or close to the sideloader. A risk assessment would have identified the risks if carried out appropriately.