Plastic firm fined after worker loses finger

 

A plastic manufacturer that provides cases for computer games has been fined GBP 7,000 after an employee severed his finger in an accident at work.

The worker was trying to fix a machine at a DuBois factory in Corby when the middle finger on his left hand became trapped in the rotating dial used to add colour to the plastic.

His finger was unable to be saved and had to be amputated above the knuckle, an operation which required the employee to stay off work for several weeks and attend physiotherapy sessions for ten months.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the machine's guard had been removed.

DuBois Ltd, trading as AGI Amaray, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11 (1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and was fined GBP 7,000 by Corby Magistrates' Court.

Following the hearing, HSE inspector Sally Harris, said: "The guarding was regularly removed to allow staff to calibrate the machine but it had not been put back. This meant the company did not prevent access to dangerous rotating parts and as a result a man suffered an entirely foreseeable, preventable and painful injury."

Posted by Alison Spriggs

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