Worker's serious injuries lead to £7,000 fine for labels company

A labels company has been fined for a safety breach after a worker sustained a serious hand injury when it was caught between two contra rotating rollers on a working machine.

The employee severed the first finger of his right hand to the second knuckle and broke his middle finger in the incident.

He was attempting to clean a coating roller on a finishing machine, and had removed the roller several times to make adjustments and clean away dried on primer. He then tried to brush off the dried primer from the roller while it was in situ on the working machine, but his right hand was caught and pulled between two rollers.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive established that the machine was missing suitable guarding, and had been for some time. Had a guard been fitted the incident would have been avoided.

The company was fined £7,000 and ordered to pay £5,637 in costs after pleading guilty.

Vocam Training Video
Lockout / Tagout – Making it Safe
Hand Aware
Safety Awareness

E-learning Course
Lockout Tagout – E-learning
Safety Awareness – E-learning
Available as part of TrainNOW. For more information, contact us or visit our website.

Source: http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2013/rnn-se-00313.htm?eban=rss-

Food manufacturer fined after worker loses tip of finger in poorly guarded machine

A food manufacturer has appeared in court for safety offences after one of its workers lost the tip of her finger while trying to clear a blockage in a badly-guarded machine.

The worker was in the production area while a mobile screw conveyor was being used to fill a packing machine, known to block regularly.

HSE found that the fixed guard over the top of the hopper, which prevented workers getting access to the dangerous screw part, had been modified. Instead of being fixed at all four corners, it was fixed at only two, allowing it to be lifted while the machine was running.

The worker attempted to clear a blockage while the machine was operating and her hand slipped, hitting the screw mechanism.

The company was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,506.

Vocam Training Video
Lockout / Tagout – Making it Safe
Hand Aware
Safety Awareness

E-learning Course
Lockout Tagout – E-learning
Safety Awareness – E-learning
Available as part of TrainNOW. For more information, contact us or visit our website.

Source: http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2013/rnn-yh-713.htm

Electrical and machine guarding hazards lead to OSHA inspection and citation

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited a building materials company with 7 serious violations for exposing workers to electrical and machine guarding hazards, with proposed penalties of $41,000.

OSHA conducted a safety inspection in response to a complaint about unsafe working conditions and machine hazards. They discovered workers building prefabricated wood trusses without the required machine guarding.

"The lack of machine guarding can lead to serious injuries, including amputations," said Casey Perkins, OSHA's area director in Austin. "OSHA's standards must be followed to prevent accidents, injuries and illnesses."

The serious violations include failing to provide machine guarding while operating saws, ensure that rotating shafts on machines are covered, ensure that electrical wiring is protected and ensure electrical cords are maintained in safe condition.

Vocam Training Videos
Lockout / Tagout - Making it Safe
Safety Awareness

E-learning Courses
Lockout / Tagout - E-Learning
Safety Awareness - E-Learning

Available as part of TrainNOW. For more information, contact us or visit our website.

Source: http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=NEWS_RELEASES&p_id=23481

Machine safety - The focus of WorkSafe's latest campaign

An image of a man with his hand trapped in a mincer has gone up on billboards around Victoria, as part of the latest stage in a major campaign by WorkSafe to warn employers and employees of the risk associated with dangerous machines.

According to the latest WorkSafe statistics, in Victoria:
* 6 workers are maimed every day
* 7 workers suffer an amputation every month
* 11 workers suffer a laceration every week

In the last 5 years, almost 11,000 workers have suffered injuries such as amputations and lacerations caused by dangerous machines, leading to a $220 million bill for medical treatment, rehabilitation and income support. Of the 11,000 injuries, 71% occurred in manufacturing, construction, transport, warehousing and storage industries.

“If a machine is used to mix, move or stamp, then it can cut, crush or amputate,” WorkSafe’s Health and Safety Operations General Manager, Lisa Sturzenegger said.

Over the next year, WorkSafe inspectors will be upping the ante on employers to control dangerous machines by ensuring they are properly guarded, have emergency controls in place and train and supervise their workers properly.

Vocam Training Video
Lockout / Tagout – Making it Safe
Leadership: Being Proactive in Safety
Safety Awareness

E-learning Courses
Lockout Tagout – E-learning
Leadership: Being Proactive in Safety - E-Learning
Safety Awareness – E-learning

Available as part of TrainNOW. For more information, contact us or visit our website.

Source: http://www.worksafenews.com.au/news/item/279-don-t-mince-around-with-machines.html

Worker loses 2 fingers in vegetable slicer

A company has been ordered to pay more than $50,000 after an employee had two fingers chopped off in a vegetable slicer.

The company was found guilty of failing to provide and maintain a safe workplace and, by that failure, causing the employee serious harm. The company was fined $40,000 and ordered to pay $12,000 in costs.

The business produced ready-made salads for supply to supermarkets and contained several machines to cut and slice the produce, one of which was a belt slicer. An employee was operating the machine and wanted to clear some vegetable matter from the chamber.

He hit the emergency stop button and put his hand into the chamber, not knowing that the emergency stop button and interlock were not functioning because of a fault in the electrical relay.

The blades were still spinning when he put his hand in and two of his fingers were amputated to the middle knuckle.

WorkSafe acting executive director Ian Munns said the case illustrated how important it was to have lock-out and tagging procedures at workplaces with machinery. "It's never safe to leave any piece of machinery operational while doing repairs or performing maintenance" he said.

Vocam Training Video
Electrical Safety Essentials
Safety Awareness
Lockout / Tagout – Making it Safe

E-learning Course
Safety Awareness – E-learning
Lockout Tagout – E-learning
Electrical Safety Essentials - E-learning

Available as part of TrainNOW. For more information, contact us or visit our website.
Source: http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/2012/11/01/20/20/40-000-fine-for-finger-slice-accident