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A mechanical engineering firm has been fined after a worker was seriously injured during maintenance work in Cheshire.
Cole Mechanical Services Ltd of Ashbridge Road, Chesham, Buckinghamshire pleaded guilty to a breach of Section 2(1)of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. It was fined £30,000 with £8,995 in costs.
Minshull Street Crown Court heard how Geoffrey Hatton, 49, was using a mobile elevating work platform (MEWP) while dismantling a compactor at a site in Wilmslow, Cheshire on 19 January 2015.
He was working alongside a colleague to take large pieces of cladding off the frame of the compactor when a large piece of cladding came into contact with the MEWP and caused it to fall over. As a result, Mr Hatton fractured his skull and two ribs in the incident. He spent two months in hospital and has been unable to return to work.
A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found serious safety failings by the company. The MEWP was being used outside when it was only suitable for internal work, the firm's employees were not trained in how to use MEWPS or how to safely erect tower scaffolding, and no risk assessment had been conducted for the work being carried out.
In addition, at the time of the incident another worker was working on a fragile roof with no protection to prevent falls.
(LM/CD)
