19.12.2023

Company warned after dropped load

The UK Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) has served an improvement notice on the contractor Morgan Sindall Construction & Infrastructure following a dropped load incident at the Devonshire Dock Complex at Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria this August.

The incident occurred on August 21st , while the site is operated by BAE Systems Marine, Morgan Sindall was in control of the lifting operation using a single rail overhead crane, what caused the load to drop we do not know and as the investigation is ongoing – no one is saying. Thankfully no one was hurt in the incident, however, the ONR says that it identified the potential for harm and risk of serious personal injury, which required regulatory action. We contacted Morgan Sindall for a comment or further information but have not yet heard back.

Morgan Sindall has been working on an extension to the facility which has been building nuclear submarines for the past 30 years. The contract, awarded in 2016, is to prepare and expand the facility to build the new Successor nuclear submarines, It is now nearing completion, but the company has until the end of February to comply with the improvement notice.