NOTE: OSHA would allow the “minor servicing exception” in this scenario, although the UK HSE does not.
A tissue manufacturing company has been fined after an employee, 24, was seriously injured while clearing a machine blockage at its factory.
During the manufacturing process, a tissue blockage occurred in the rollers of the machine, and the worker instructed his colleague to ‘jog’ the machine while he cleared the paper by hand.
Jogging – also known as inching – refers to the momentary energization of a motor to move it in small, precise increments, only while the operator holds down a button.
However, as his colleague did this, the worker’s right hand became trapped in the roller. Although he managed to pull his hand out of the machine, he had sustained crushing injuries to it.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that tissue blockages were a regular occurrence at the factory, happening around 2-3 times a day. However, there was also no safe system of work in place for unblocking the tissue machine, and the risk assessment in place at the time of the incident, which had last been reviewed in 2021, identified that formal safe operating procedures were needed to reduce risk, but this was never actioned by the company.
HSE guidance on safe use of work equipment highlights the importance of following safe isolation and lock-out procedures before carrying out any maintenance or unblocking work on machinery. Employers must ensure that equipment is properly isolated from all power sources and that systems are regularly monitored and reviewed to prevent inadvertent contact with dangerous parts of machinery.
The company pleaded guilty to breaching section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, etc. The company was fined £60,000 and ordered to pay costs of £5,107.