A Derbyshire-based engineering firm has been fined £20,000 and ordered to pay costs of nearly £6,000 after an employee, Anthony Baker, severed the tips of his fingers on an unprotected bandsaw.

Chesterfield Magistrate’s Court heard that Mr Baker had been cleaning the saw at Firth Rixson Forgings Ltd in May 2011 when the saw, which had been operating in automatic mode, and his glove got caught and dragged into the equipment.

The Health and Safety Executive investigation learnt that the equipment had not been switched off prior to cleaning and that the blade had never been accurately guarded.

The company pleaded guilty to breaching the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.

Following the hearing, the HSE Inspectorate commented:

“This was a serious failure by Firth Rixson and Mr Baker sustained injuries and others were exposed to similar dangers.”

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