15.03.2009

SGB fined for scaffold collapse

SGB Services was fined £4,000 plus costs of £6,000 at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court, on Friday after pleading guilty to a breach of the Work at Height Regulations.

The company was charged with not ensuring that the working platforms that they had installed were erected to ensure that components did not become accidentally displaced as to endanger workers or passers-by.

The 17 metre high – 30 metre long scaffold collapsed across Needless Alley at 6.40pm in the evening on December 13th 2006 at a time that it was being used by pedestrians.

The court also fined John Davies Interiors Ltd, of Century House Oldbury, £5,000 plus costs of £1,996 after it also pleaded guilty to breaching the Work at Height Regulations. The company admitted that it had not ensured that the working platforms were not used in that position, as they had not been inspected within the previous seven days.

HSE Inspector Mike Ford said: “The incident placed pedestrians and workers at risk because the two companies had failed to provide a scaffold that was suitably tied to the building and failed to ensure that the scaffold was inspected regularly after the erection.”

“All employers have a responsibility to ensure that safe working practices are in place, because failure to do so could well cost lives, as well as enforcement action from HSE. It is extremely fortunate that nobody was injured, as CCTV footage of pedestrians passing within seconds of the collapse clearly demonstrates, it could have been so much worse.”

“Anyone attempting to work on that scaffolding would have been at high risk. Falls from height at work resulted in 45 deaths last year, In addition, 3,750 workers were seriously injured after falling from height and 3,409 of those were employed in the construction sector.”