;

Court Summary - at a glance

Date of offence:
8 November 2013
 
Plea:
Guilty
 
Decision:
Convicted
 
Final decision date:
 
Fine imposed:
$33,000

Safety lessons learned:

Ensure the nip point hazards in the tripper room are isolated from employees with guarding that meets AS 4024 Safety of Machinery Standards.

Defendant name:
Ravensdown Fertiliser Co-operative Limited
 
Industry:
Manufacturing
 
Date of offence:
8 November 2013
 
Facts in brief:
The Defendant operates a bulk fertilizer store and packing plant. The victim was employed as a store person at the time of the accident. On the morning of the accident the wire rope in the tripper room snapped. Temporary repairs were in place until a replacement rope could be sourced. Once the tripper rope had been repairs, the victim to the tripper control panel on the ground level of the store. The control panel indicated tripper winch fault and the victim attempted to fix this fault.

In the process, he put his hand on the wire and when doing so the wire tensioned itself and grabbed his hand which got caught in the damaged edge of the metal cable support tray below the wire rope. The tip of the victim’s left little finger was sliced off resulting in his finger being amputated to the first knuckle.
 
Offence section:
S6 Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992
 
Date(s) charged:

Court:
Napier - District Court
 
Plea:
Guilty
 
Final decision date:
 
Decision:
Convicted
 
Fine imposed:
$33,000
 
Maximum fine available:
$250,000
 
Reparation:
$5,000 (plus Court costs of $130)