Parker Hannifin fined £1m for worker death

The 48-year-old-man was crushed to death by a CNC milling machine after it overturned while he was carrying out work with an angle grinder, Lincoln Magistrates Court heard.

Parker Hannifin – which manufacturers pumps, valves and a variety of process equipment – also failed to ensure the people tasked with lifting and moving the machine were sufficiently trained to carry out such an activity, the Court was told

Taking an extra few minutes to properly think through a problem could save a worker’s life

HSE inspector Martin Giles

“Colin Reddish’s death was entirely preventable. Parker Hannifin Manufacturing Ltd had already tried unsuccessfully to lift the machine using a fork lift truck but instead of learning from this failure they carried on. Their ad hoc approach to managing dangerous tasks resulted in one of their workers losing his life,” said Martin Giles, and inspector for the Health & Safety Executive (HSE), which carried out an investigation.

During the investigation, HSE found that the work being undertaken by Reddish was not properly planned.

According to the HSE, the centre of gravity of the machine had not been properly assessed and taken into account before the move took place.

“This resulted in an unsafe system of work being used for the job, with fatal consequences,” it said.

“All companies can learn from this incident and make sure they have properly risk assessed the situation before they start and that they have trained staff with the right type of experience to carry out the task in hand safely,” Giles added.

“Taking an extra few minutes to properly think through a problem could save a worker’s life.”

Parker Hannifin Manufacturing pleaded guilty to breaching Reg 3(1) of Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety of Work etc Act 1974.

On top of the £1m fine, the company was also charged costs of £6,311 and a victim surcharge of £120.