The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has prosecuted a West Midlands company, after an employee sustained serious injuries to his hand when it was caught in an industrial drill.

In November 2008, Aaron Watts was working at the Shirley-based Thor Hammer Company when an unguarded pedestal drilling machine he was operating caught his glove, entangling his right hand in one of the rotating spindles of the drill.

Mr Watts suffered injuries to the back of his hand and a deep laceration to the palm and was away from work for a month.

On Thursday (11/03/10) at Solihull Magistrates’ Court, the Thor Hammer Company Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and fined £2,500. The company was also ordered to pay £2,594 in costs.

After the hearing, HSE inspector Clive Neil said the offence was ‘all the more serious’ because the company had received previous advice form the HSE about the need to fit guards to its drilling machines, as well as identifying the need for guards in its own risk assessment. However, Thor Hammer Company had failed to implement the measures.

‘Once again we have an incident of an employee who suffered serious injury simply because there wasn't the necessary protection around the drill. Mr Watts is lucky he didn't lose a finger or worse.

‘It would have cost far less than the fine handed out today to install the required protection. Only weeks before the offence the company received a quote to fit a suitable guard at a cost of only £165.’

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