"broken neck, back fractures, broken ribs, a fractured shoulder blade, a ruptured spleen, torn liver, a punctured lung, facial fractures and loss of teeth."

Machinery in our industry can be classified in two groups. Either older or newer. The difference can be stark in terms of installed safety mechanisms. Newer machinery have the latest safety equipment installed. Whereas older machinery do not unless the aluminium company retrofitted the equipment. Here is an incident emphasizing the importance of machinery guarding:

An engineering firm in England has been fined after a worker suffered severe crush injuries while working on a mould making machine.

A local Magistrates Court heard how an aluminium casting employee was injured after attempting to light the burners on a moulding machine at their plant in April 2018.

While the employee leant into the machine the pattern plate closed on his head and upper body.

The worker, who has asked not be named, suffered extensive injuries, including a broken neck, back fractures, broken ribs, a fractured shoulder blade, a ruptured spleen, torn liver, a punctured lung, facial fractures and loss of teeth. He remains unable to return to work as a result of his injuries.

A subsequent investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found there was inadequate safeguarding to prevent access between the closing pattern parts of the moulding machine.

The aluminium castings company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 11 of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and had been fined £32,000 and ordered to pay costs of £1739.70.

After the hearing HSE Inspector commented: “This case highlights the importance of foundries checking guarding on their machines and not to be complacent about machinery safety. In this case (the company) failed to ensure that the machine was guarded to the correct standard and it could have easily resulted in a fatal injury.”

We pray that the injured worker recovers fully from their injuries. We acknowledge that the recovery may take years.

We also pray that this incident is never repeated. Please look at your machinery and investigate if the latest guarding has been installed.

The Aluminium Times Magazine has a few publications on this topic. The articles can be downloaded here.

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