The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has successfully prosecuted a northeast engineering firm for deliberately compromising the safety guards on machinery for production reasons.
H. Mullins (Earby) Limited – which produces precision engineered components – used Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) machines as part of the production process, including machining centres, milling machines and drilling machines.
In February, an HSE inspector found that the interlocks had been deliberately defeated on three CNC machining centres and a CNC milling machine –
and the interlock was broken on a CNC drilling machine.
This allowed employees to access dangerous parts of the machines during automatic CNC operations, leading to a risk of serious injury.
The company had been served with HSE Improvement Notices following an inspection in 2008 – and a letter sent in 2012 highlighted similar issues.
At South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court, H.Mullins (Earby) Limited – of Western Road, Jarrow in Tyne and Wear – pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.
The company was fined £13,500 with £1,439.10 costs.
After the hearing, HSE Inspector Fiona McGarry said:
“The deliberate defeating of safety devices in any workplace is not acceptable.
“This company had received advice on two previous occasions in relation to the guarding standards on CNC machines – and had not taken appropriate action.
“HSE will not hesitate to take enforcement action against companies who continually flout health and safety law and put their employees at risk.”
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