Crane manufacturer fined following near-miss in Sheffield

Published: HSE, February 2010

A crane manufacturer and supplier was fined £10,000 after an electric overhead moving crane dropped a load, narrowly avoiding the crane operator.

The company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 6(1)(a) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and was also ordered to pay £10,000 costs at Sheffield Magistrates Court.

The company had supplied a Sheffield-based paper manufacturer with the crane to lift reels of paper. In February 2006, during a routine lifting operation, an anchorage point on the crane failed, causing the crane to drop its combined weight of 1.8 tonnes from a height of approximately 1.2 metres.

After the hearing HSE Inspector Alison Crank said:

"It was extremely fortunate that no one was injured or even killed in this incident. Had the load fallen moments earlier it would have fallen into the path of the crane operator.

"The supplier should have ensured the safety critical anchorage points on the crane had been designed for the typical loading conditions that the crane would experience during routine use.

"Companies that supply lifting equipment must be aware that they will be held to account if the equipment is not well designed or manufactured."

Notes to editors

• Section 6(1)a of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 states: "It shall be the duty of any person who designs, manufactures, imports or supplies any article for use at work or any article of fairground equipment to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that the article is so designed and constructed that it will be safe and without risks to health at all times when it is being set, used, cleaned or maintained by a person at work."
• More information on health and safety can be found online www.hse.gov.uk

Back to news