S & K Donnelly Pty Ltd

Incident description:

On 3 February 2009 a 30 year old worker sustained serious injuries when a steel I-beam fell onto his legs.

The court acknowledged S & K Donnelly Pty Ltd employed the injured worker as a boilermaker at its workplace.

The court found the defendant held obligations under s.28(1) of the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995 being a person conducting a business or undertaking.

The incident occurred while the worker was involved in the movement of four steel I-beams from the workshop to the front driveway. The I-beams weighed approx. 1000 kilograms and were about ten metres long. The injured worker was guiding the I-beams while another worker moved the beams using a forklift with a jib attachment. The I-beams were suspended from the jib attachment using a flat synthetic sling.

Two I-beams had been moved and were lying on the ground on their sides with the flanges vertical. In preparation for the placement of the third beam, the injured worker placed a length of hollow square-section steel tube across the flanges of the beams at one end and a length of pine timber across the flanges of one of the beams at the other end. The steel and timber acted as support bearers for the third beam and also provided a space between the beams to allow the lifting sling to be removed from the third beam after placement. The third beam was intended to be placed directly on top of the beam below such that the flanges were in line.

The worker entered the space between the two beams lying on the ground and was standing at the mid-point of the third beam as it was being lowered into position. As the worker unhooked the sling from the hook at the jib, the beam fell onto and broke both of his legs.

The investigation findings presented to the court revealed:

• it was unable to be determined precisely what caused the beam to fall, however it was likely due to either the pine timber support breaking, or inadvertent contact being made between the jib or hook with the sling as the forklift was reversing
• the defendant had stacked steel beams in this way at the workplace on previous occasions
• the defendant had no measures in place to secure the beams from falling or otherwise  ensure the stability of the stacked beams
• the defendant had not carried out any risk assessment in relation to the hazards associated with the task of moving and stacking steel I-beams at the workplace other than to ensure clear access
• the defendant had not provided instruction and training to the injured worker in relation to a safe method of work for the stacking of I-beams
• the defendant had not provided the injured worker with any written procedures for this task
• the defendant did not identify that the pine timber support would be suitable for the task or able to carry the weight of the beam.

Court result:

The defendant pleaded guilty in the Sandgate Industrial Magistrates Court on 5 November 2009 to breaching s.24(1) of the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995, having failed to meet its workplace health and safety obligations.

Industrial Magistrate Mr Orazio Rinaudo fined the defendant $32 000 and ordered investigation and court costs totalling $1061.54.

In reaching a decision the Industrial Magistrate acknowledged the defendant failed to manage the hazards associated with the system of work for the movement, placement and stacking of unsecured steel I-beams at height.

In deciding the penalty imposed Industrial Magistrate Mr Orazio Rinaudo took into account the defendant had not been prosecuted previously for any other workplace health and safety breaches, cooperated with the investigation and entered an early plea of guilty. The defendant was sentenced with no conviction recorded.

Considerations for prevention:

When working in the manufacturing industry where there is exposure to the risk of unsecured loads falling, obligation holders should apply a risk management approach to ensure the selection of suitable control measures.

Risk management involves identifying the hazards, evaluating the consequences and likelihood of harm that may result from the hazard, deciding on and implementing control measures to prevent or minimise the level of the risk from the hazard and monitoring the effectiveness of the control measures to ensure they remain working correctly.

When deciding on and implementing control measures associated with the risk of unsecured loads falling, obligation holders should ensure that such tasks are undertaken by suitably qualified and experienced workers. Obligation holders should consider the development of a comprehensive training program to ensure workers are aware of the risks involved in their workplace and are encouraged, prepared and equipped with the resources to identify and report potential hazards.

If engineering or design control measures are identified as appropriate, obligation holders should ensure that manufacturers are consulted prior to any intended modifications. Modifications should then be inspected by a qualified engineer prior to work re-commencing to ensure they meet the requirements for the intended purpose.

Visit the Workplace Health and Safety Queensland website for more information on:

• Health and safety information for manufacturing
• Modifying plant, machinery or equipment
• Managing risk
• Guidelines for working around trucks - loading and unloading (PDF, 226 kB)
• Forklift trucks
• Crane and hoist licensing requirements
• Forklift licensing requirements
• Training staff
• First aid
• Personal protective equipment
• Manufacturing industry sprains and strains prevention factsheet (PDF, 183 kB)
• Mobile Crane Code of Practice 2006
• Plant Code of Practice 2005
• Risk Management Code of Practice 2007
• Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995.