Battery recycling firm Envirowales Ltd of Victoria Street, St Albans and Jamestown Industries Ltd of Stocks Lane, Barnsley, both pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and were ordered to pay total costs of 8,600.
Caerphilly Magistrates’ Court heard how the 33 year-old man from Nantyglo, who wished to remain anonymous, was operating the saw at the Jamestown Industries lead recycling plant to cut lengths of lead into smaller pieces at the facility on 21 February 2012.
When one piece became jammed, the man tried to dislodge the lead believing the saw was fully retracted and out of reach. However his right hand made contact with the blade, severing his third finger, which had to be amputated above the second knuckle, and the tendons and artery of his middle finger.
The employee, who returned to work four months after the incident, suffers poor grip, difficulty picking up small objects and experiences aches and constant pins and needles in his hand.
Contact
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), who brought the prosecution, discovered that at the time of the incident there had been no experienced operator working with the employee.
While training had been undertaken, HSE investigators claimed it had been inadequate to ensure all employees understood the risks in place when the saw was retracted, or the procedure for removing material jammed in the saw.
HSE also reported both businesses had failed to prevent access to the dangerous parts of the saw, supervise inexperienced employees and ensure that the injured employee had understood every aspect of the operation.
Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Joanne Carter said: “This accident was foreseeable and both companies have fallen woefully short of the standard required by law. They both failed in their roles to protect workers by not properly guarding this machine. The injured employee should never have been placed in the position he was, and has suffered a debilitating injury as a result.
Failure
“Employers must fully assess the dangers associated with their work and put in place control measures. In this case, the risks associated with saws are well known, and should have been adequately controlled.”
The estimated 50 million plant owned by Envirowales, the company responsible for the day-to-day running of Jamestown Industries, is a strategic site for the recycling of waste lead acid batteries and directly employs over 100 people. Neither company were available for comment.
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