Farming Company Breach PUWER Regulations
Have you assessed your machinery and its safety system in line with PUWER (The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998)?
The owners of a farming company have been fined after an employee suffered serious injuries when his glove got caught and his arm was drawn into the rollers of a potato grading machine, where he was stuck for 45 minutes.
The HSE identified that a safe stop procedure could have been followed, and that the contra-rotating rollers should have been guarded.
David and Philip Leverton pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 3 (1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, and Regulation 11 of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998. They were each fined £5,000 and each ordered to pay costs of £892.10
What went wrong?
Under section 11 of PUWER Regulations 1998 there is a requirement for any dangerous parts of machinery to be adequately guarded and to ensure the machinery is stopped before a person enters a danger zone.
In this case it appears that the machinery was running whilst the task was undertaken, so a bad move there, but also there were no adequate guards to protect employees from the rollers.
What should have happened?
A risk assessment considering the PUWER regulations and identifying the need for guarding, a safe system of work detailing the safe working procedure for such a task, should have been in place. This explains the safe stop procedure, usually referred to as “lock out, tag out”. A person entering the area applies a padlock (that only they hold the key for) to the main control panel for the machine to prevent a colleague inadvertently starting it up. There also should be adequate warning signage alerting others to the worker’s presence and not to start it up or conduct any other work on the machine whilst this is going on.
What can I do?
- Familiarise yourself with your responsibilities under safety legislation, in this case particularly the PUWER Regulations and Management of H&S at Work (MHSW)1998.
- Conduct a thorough assessment of all areas of the business, including any machinery.
- Remember to look at guarding to ensure it is adequate and protects people from harm, and it cannot easily be defeated (such as a special key being needed to remove it).
- Consider interlocked guarding – this is guarding with sensors that tell the machine if it’s been opened or isn’t securely in place and this stops the machine or will not allow it to run.
- Document all actions taken.
Qdos are able to arrange site audits to look at your management system and give support and advice on improving, where appropriate, including support with policies and procedures. We will look at your current arrangements and provide a report on findings deemed in contravention to safety legislation and or a risk to your people / business.
Qdos can also help with reviewing / creating risk assessments which is a legal requirement for you to have documented if you have at least five employees.
Our resource centre has more guides to help you in health and safety issues.
