Sun Engineering (Qld) Pty Ltd

Incident description:

A worker was injured while assisting in the moving of steel pipes. The worker was slinging a 2 tonne steel pipe approximately 12 metres in length under the direction of the mobile crane driver.

The pipes were positioned on the ground two pipes high and being moved from the yard to the workshop. Timber dunnage was used beneath the rows of pipes for storage purposes. The crane driver lifted one end of a pipe while the worker, standing at the opposite end, placed a 10 millimetre chain around the pipe. As the crane driver lifted the pipe, the worker moved to the centre of the pipe to gain easier access for lifting purposes and to place a piece of dunnage underneath the pipe.

Whilst the worker leant against and double wrapped the pipe with a 10 millimetre chain the dunnage beneath the pipe broke causing the worker to lose his footing. This resulted in his right foot being caught between two pipes and causing a crush injury.

The Workplace Health and Safety Queensland investigation found the defendant failed to ensure safe systems of work to eliminate/minimise the risk of injury to workers when storing and moving steel pipes.

Court result:

Sun Engineering (Qld) Pty Ltd pleaded guilty in the Ipswich Industrial Magistrates Court on 29 June 2009 to breaching s.24(1) the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995, for failing to meet its workplace health and safety obligations. It was fined with no conviction recorded.

The court took into account the defendant had not been prosecuted previously for any for any workplace health and safety breaches and entered an early plea of guilty.

Industrial Magistrate Ms Virginia Sturgess ordered the defendant pay a penalty of $30,000 as well as investigation and court costs totaling $3,499.

Considerations for prevention:

When working in any industry where there is the use of wood dunnage to support steel pipes (or other products and materials) for lifting purposes, obligation holders should apply a risk management approach to ensure the selection of suitable control measures and should implement work method statements for the job being undertaken.

Risk management involves evaluating the consequences and likelihood of harm that may result from working in and around mobile plant, deciding and implementing control measures to prevent or minimise the level of the risk and monitoring the effectiveness of the control measures to ensure they continue to work correctly.

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

• risk management
• Risk Management Code of Practice 2007  
• health and a safety tips for the manufacturing industry
• employer training options
• training staff and using control measures to manage risks associated with workplace hazards
• Mobile Crane Code of Practice 2006 and Plant Code of Practice 2005
• crane and hoist licensing requirements.