Pilkington UK fined after falling glass hits workers
1 min read
Pilkington UK has been fined £20,000 after two workers were badly injured by falling glass panes from an overloaded trolley.
The glass manufacturer had failed to train staff properly on safety procedures, Bristol Magistrates Court heard.
Ashley Emes of Longwell Green, Bristol suffered a broken leg and needed 72 stitches when he was hit by a sheet of glass. Co-worker Nick Stone of Weston-super-Mare also suffered severe cuts following the accident at Pilkington UK's Imperial Park site in Bristol.
The men had stacked a 1,500kg capacity trolley with 1,780kg of glass, the court was told.
The load was unevenly distributed causing the glass sheets to slide off, the court heard.
HSE inspector, Mehtaab Hamid said: ""This horrific incident could have been avoided if Pilkington had a system in place to ensure its staff knew the loading capacity of the trolley, the weight of the loads being put on it, and how to load it correctly."
He added: "Employers have a duty to ensure their staff have the information and training necessary to carry out their duties safely, and higher standards should be expected from such a large and well known company."
Pilkington UK pleaded guilty to a breach of Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.
Best practice advice on moving loads by trolley can be found on the HSE website by clicking the link below:
