A Birmingham firm has been fined after an accident at its premises where a man was crushed to death.
David Hunt died when a crane’s jig and the load it was holding fell onto him at Arkinstall Galvanising Ltd’s Ebro works. A subsequent investigation by the Health and Safety Executive found that the lifting machinery had been poorly maintained.
Now called Ark Brothers Limited, the firm was fined £1,500 and ordered to pay £37,500 costs after breaching health and safety regulations. Wolverhampton Crown Court heard that Mr Hunt, who had worked for the company for more than two decades, as did his father, was moving metal components on the site when the accident happened.
After the hearing the HSE said that Mr Hunt’s death could easily have been avoided if the company had implemented a safe system of work. Inspector Judith Lloyd said: “Health and safety generally at the site was accorded a low priority, with the emphasis instead firmly on production. Employees were regularly exposed to unacceptable risks to their health and safety. It is a tragedy for Mr Hunt and his family that his death could have been prevented if the company had taken proper precautions.”