Risk, Health and Safety Information

Roofing company fined after worker’s death

 

A roofing firm has been sentenced for serious safety failings, which emerged when a worker died after falling through a rooflight.

 

Mark Cooper, 46, from Kettering, died three days after the incident at a commercial unit on the Earlstrees Industrial Estate in Corby on 11 June 2011.

 

Northampton Magistrates’ Court heard that Mr Cooper was working for JBS Roofing Ltd and had been instructed by the company to investigate a roof leak.

 

While he was replacing a rooflight, Mr Cooper fell six metres through the fragile surface on to a concrete floor below. He suffered a fractured skull and died in hospital on the 14 June 2011.

 

An investigation by the HSE found control measures such as edge protection, coverings or fall protection over fragile rooflights, and safe access/egress from the roof, were all missing.

 

JBS Roofing Ltd had also failed to properly plan the roof refurbishment project and had not coordinated with the customer.

 

JBS Roofing Ltd of Rockingham Road, Kettering, pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005, and was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay costs of £4,987.

 

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Samuel Russell said:

 

“Tragically, a worker died in what was a preventable incident. This case shows how important it is to have the correct safe systems of work in place for the entire duration of the project.

 

“It is not acceptable to use lesser standards in work methods or safety equipment in any situation, but especially when the work requires more permanent solutions for the longevity of the work.

 

“The company was experienced in the roofing industry and had undertaken more complex and difficult projects before. Its actions placed roofing workers at great risk.

 

“Working at height is still the biggest killer in the construction industry. HSE expects all stakeholders in the roofing industry to work to required standards to prevent further tragedies from happening.”

   

Westfield in court over worker’s fall
 

 

The owners of the Westfield shopping centres have been fined after a worker suffered a fractured shoulder in a fall during construction of a roof extension at White City mall.

Westfield Shoppingtowns Ltd was prosecuted by the HSE following the incident at the west London complex on 20 December 2013.

 

Westminster Magistrates heard that the company was also the principal contractor for the construction of a two-storey roof extension to an existing retail store, part of a ‘Kidzania’ project to provide a new leisure and educational facility for children.

The 39-year-old worker, Brett Mason, from Sedgley, West Midlands, was one of a team of subcontractors hired to relocate five units, used to supply and circulate air in the building, from the previous roof level to the new roof plant deck.

 

On the night of the incident, he and a colleague had been finishing work in preparation for the Christmas break and, in a final check of the plant deck, the two had a walk around to ensure all their materials were safely secured and not liable to blow off the roof in high winds.

 

They went into an area of the plant deck where installation of the mesh flooring had been recently completed and where they had stored large sections of duct. They found two duct sections they felt were not securely lashed down, so they decided to untie them and lay them down before securing them firmly.

 

As they were about to work on the second duct, Mr Mason stepped back and fell through an unprotected 8m x 1m gap in the plant deck mesh flooring, landing on the roof deck two metres below.

 
He sustained a dislocated and fractured right shoulder and was unable to work for six months.

 

The court heard that HSE’s investigation found the worker’s fall could have been easily avoided had edge protection been placed around the gap, as is the accepted practice to protect workers operating at height.

 

Westfield Shoppingtowns Ltd, of Mid City Place, High Holborn, London, was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £1,247 in costs after admitting a breach of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.

 

After the hearing, HSE inspector Loraine Charles said:

 

“The hole through which Mr Mason fell was one of a number of planned gaps in the plant deck mesh flooring. Westfield Shoppingtowns Ltd was well aware of the potential for the creation of risks of fall from height. As the principal contractor, it should have ensured that steps were taken to mitigate those risks whenever and wherever they arose.

 

“It was under a duty to ensure that the installation of the plant deck flooring was planned to make certain that intended gaps were provided with suitable edge protection at the earliest opportunity.

 

“This painful injury to Mr Mason, the after-effects of which still continue to have an impact on his daily life, could and should have been prevented.

 

“Falls from height is the biggest cause of fatalities in the workplace, and the second biggest cause of serious injuries.”

  

Loft company in court for scaffold collapse failings

 

A loft conversion company has been fined for safety failings after an employee was injured in a dramatic scaffold collapse outside a property in North London.

 

The structure buckled, tipped towards the home it was being used to serve and bent in on itself – effectively creating a chute that sent the worker and an array of materials, including plaster boards, wood and lead rolls, crashing six metres to the ground below.

 

Thomas Pastura, 24, broke two ribs in the fall at the property in Danvers Road, Hornsey, on 4 October 2013, but was fortunate not to have been more seriously injured or even killed.

 

His employer, Acton-based Lofty Creations UK Ltd, was prosecuted by the HSE after an investigation identified clear failings with the design of the scaffold.

 

Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard it was being used to provide access to the roof of a traditional two-storey property where a loft conversion was underway, and had been built to reach across a ground level bay window.

 

HSE established that the weight of the materials on the structure at the time of collapse was between 3-3.5 tonnes – the equivalent of a transit van. This was far greater than it could safely handle and it gave way as it was simply unable to bear the load.

 

Magistrates were told that, as a company routinely engaged with work at height, Lofty Creations should have known the property required a scaffold built to an approved design by a specialist structural engineer.

 

Lofty Creations UK Ltd, of Warple Way, Acton, NW3, was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay a further £1,019 in costs after pleading guilty to a single breach of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007.

 

After the hearing HSE Inspector Simon Hester said:

 

“The collapse would not have occurred had the scaffold been designed by a competent specialist to carry loads of 3.5 tonnes with an overhanging cantilever to accommodate the bay window.

 

“That didn’t happen and Mr Pastura suffered a painful injury as a result – although he is perhaps fortunate not to have come off a lot worse.

 

“Lofty Creations failed to adequately plan and design the scaffold that collapsed; failed to manage the storage of heavy materials; and ultimately failed to protect its workforce.”

 

 

Pair in court for endangering homeowners’ lives

 

Two tradesmen have been fined after the lives of homeowners were put at risk when one of them illegally installed a boiler.

 

High Wycombe Magistrates heard the homeowner had contracted Anthony Shaw, who trades as Quality Building Services, Aylesbury, to extend his home in October 2012.

 

Part of the work included moving a boiler from an airing cupboard to the new extension and Mr Shaw recommended Darren Bridgen, also of Aylesbury, to the homeowner to carry out the gas work but failed to check he was Gas Safe registered. Mr Shaw would be paid for the work and be responsible for paying Mr Bridgen.

 

Mr Brigden later removed and re-installed the boiler between 1st-8th October 2012 and the extension work was completed in July the following year.

 

The construction was then inspected by the local authority who informed the homeowner he needed a certificate for the re-installation of the boiler. When he contacted Mr Shaw to get a certificate, Mr Shaw got in touch with Darren Bridgen, who told him his Gas Safe registration had expired.

 

A Gas Safe Register engineer inspected the boiler and condemned it as ‘immediately dangerous’ and the HSE launched an investigation.

 

HSE established that Mr Brigden had not been a member of the Gas Safety Register when the work was undertaken. In addition Mr Shaw had failed to fulfil his duty to ensure the work had been undertaken by a registered engineer.

 

Anthony Shaw, 47, of Oakfield Road, Aylesbury, was fined £2,000 and ordered to pay £550 in costs as well as a £120 victim surcharge, after pleading guilty to a breach of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998.

 

Darren Brigden, 33, of Hawthorne Close, Aylesbury, was fined £1,300 and ordered to pay £550 in costs as well as a £120 victim surcharge, after pleading guilty to a breach of the same regulations.

 

Speaking after the case, HSE inspector Stephen Faulkner said:

 

“Businesses should make reasonable efforts to obtain evidence that people they intend to use to carry out gas work, either under contract or on their own behalf, is a member, or is employed by a member, of Gas Safe Register. Mr Shaw neglected to do this.

 

“Mr Bridgen was perfectly aware that he was not Gas Safe registered, even though he had been so before. It is extremely important that gas work is only undertaken by a person who has up to date competencies and holds current registration.

 

“If gas appliances, such as boilers, are not properly installed there is a risk of fire, explosion, gas leaks and carbon monoxide poisoning.”

 

Construction firms prosecuted after worker crushed by falling conveyor

 

Three construction companies have been fined after a worker was crushed by a falling section of conveyor.

 

The incident happened during construction of the Sleaford Renewable Energy plant on Boston Road on 14 February 2013 when the 4.5 tonne conveyor section overturned during installation.

 

It trapped Michael Doyle, a 49-year-old employee of Derby-based Shaw Group UK Ltd, who suffered multiple injuries including four cracked vertebrae, broken ribs, a punctured lung and broken ankle. He has not returned to work since.

 

Lincoln Magistrates’ Court heard that Shaw Group UK Ltd had been subcontracted to install a boiler and associated equipment, including a conveyor system to carry large straw bales, by Burmeister and Wain Energy (BWE).

BWE was one of two Danish companies, the other being Burmeister and Wain Scandinavian Contractor (BWSC), that had formed a consortium to design and build the centre, which burns straw and wood to create electricity and also to provide heat for some local authority buildings.

 

Shaw Group UK Ltd had already lifted three conveyor sections on to a slope leading up to the boiler by craning them on to a platform at the bottom of the slope. Skates were bolted to the front and rear legs which helped keep the section of conveyor on rails as it was dragged up the slope by manual winches set up at the top.

 

In order to fix the sections of conveyor in place workers needed to remove the skates and used jacks to raise the legs enough to take the skates off and then lower the legs down onto the rail.

 

This was carried out successfully on the first three sections but as the jacks were released, on the lower legs of the fourth and final section, one side lowered faster than the other and the conveyor swung towards two workers before violently swinging the other way and turning on its side, trapping Mr Doyle, from Fleetwood, Lancashire, underneath.

 

A HSE investigation identified safety failings by all three companies.

 

Shaw Group UK Ltd had produced a risk assessment and a plan for the installation but it did not consider removal of the skates from the legs of the conveyor sections or the manual winching of the load up the slope. The document had been sent to BWE for checking but the company did not pick up on the omission.

 

The lifting operation using jacks was not carried out safely and none of the three defendants was managing or monitoring the work in a way that would ensure its safety.

The investigation also found that BWSC failed in its responsibility as principal contractor to ensure work was properly assessed and co-ordinated between the many contractors on site.

 

Shaw Group UK Ltd, of Stores Road, Derby, was fined a total of £17,350 and ordered to pay costs of £1,710 after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 3(1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999; Regulation 8(1) (c) of the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998; and Regulation 13 (2) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007.

 

Burmeister and Wain Scandinavian Contractor, of Gydevang 35, PO Box 235, DK3450, Allerød, Denmark, was fined £4,670 and ordered to pay costs of £1,710 after pleading guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

 

Burmeister and Wain Energy, of Luntoftegardsvej 93A, DK 800 Kgs Lyngby, Denmark, was fined £5,350 and ordered to pay costs of £1,710 after admitting a breach of Regulation 13(2) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007.

 

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Martin Giles said:

 

“This was a large site with multiple contractors and up to 300 people working at any one time. Although there was a series of site rules set out in a construction phase plan, BWSC’s management of the site was poor as each of the main contractors ran their own areas of the site as they desired and were able to set additional rules. This led to different procedures being followed and a lack of control over temporary works.

 

“The failure to ensure work was carried out safely on the slope was symptomatic of more general failures which were the responsibility of  principal contractor BWSC in setting the rules, procedures and checks needed to manage a large site. These failures put all the workers on site at risk.

 

“BWE specified the use of skates for installing the conveyor system but removing them required adequate risk assessment. Although the company had read the assessment and method statement produced by Shaw Group it made no comment on it and did not approve it before it was implemented. BWE should have picked up on that document’s failures and asked Shaw Group to re-evaluate before work was allowed to begin.

 

“Shaw Group UK Ltd’s risk assessment was flawed, and its management and monitoring of the task was not sufficient to identify potential problems and stop the work in the four days before Mr Doyle was hurt. The actual method of work followed by its employees was unsafe and led to Mr Doyle’s injuries when the load overturned.”