A mining fabrication company has been fined $500,000 (and ordered to pay more than $6500 in costs) over an incident in which a worker was seriously injured by a falling metal plate.
G & G Mining Fabrication Pty Ltd pleaded guilty to failing to provide and maintain a safe work environment and, by that failure, causing serious harm to a worker and was fined in the Midland Magistrates Court today.
In August 2021, a boilermaker was employed at the company’s workshop in Hazelmere where mining and earthmoving equipment was manufactured, including heavy excavator buckets.
On the morning of the incident, the worker was engaged in fabricating a hook-up assembly for an excavator bucket when a steel plate known as a “lug plate” fell onto his head.
The plate – used to connect the arm of the excavator to the bucket - weighed more than 500kg, and the worker suffered serious head and facial injuries including multiple skull fractures and the loss of an eye.
The lug plate had been manoeuvred into a horizontal position on another part of the excavator bucket called the V-plate using an overhead crane. The crane remained attached while the workers made small tack welds to hold the lug plate in place while it was aligned.
Turnbuckles were also welded on to provide additional restraint while allowing for alignment of the lug plate.
After a number of requests from workers in an adjacent work area, the crane was released for use on another job. The injured boilermaker considered that the lug plate was secured by the turnbuckles.
The assistant was instructed to cut the turnbuckles that had been providing additional restraint, and when this was being done the boilermaker placed his head near the base of the plate to assess whether it was perpendicular. The tack welds failed and the plate fell on the boilermaker’s head.
The company did have a documented Safe Work Procedure in place, but it was concerned primarily with the use of cranes and the hazards arising from suspended loads. It was not utilised or provided to workers.
WorkSafe Commissioner Sally North said today the case illustrated the importance of having safe work procedures in place in all workplaces, especially for high hazard activities.
“This was an incident that caused horrific injuries to the boilermaker,“ Ms North said. “After the incident, the company developed a procedure specifically for this task and included that an overhead crane must remain connected to the lug plate until an adequate weld is in place.
“Being hit by falling metal objects is one of the highest risks for injuries and fatalities in the manufacturing sector and I encourage leaders working in this sector to consult workers and review their controls in relation to preventing objects from falling.”