ENGINEERING COMPANY FINED AFTER WORKER SUSTAINS FATAL INJURIES

Engineering services company Buddco Pty Ltd has been fned $600,000 for breach of its work health and safety duty following an avoidable incident where contractor Craig Tanner suffered fatal injuries after entering an ink holding tank to clean it at a factory in Auburn in 2017.

Buddco was found guilty in the District

Court of New South Wales of a charge under section 19(1)/32 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011.

Mr Tanner suffered fatal injuries when an anchor blade was activated while he was in the tank, causing his leg to become trapped.

Fellow worker Yatin Mehta entered the tank to assist and subsequently suffered serious injuries.

Buddco had been engaged by DIC Australia Pty Ltd to supply labour for, among other things, maintaining and servicing the ink manufacturing plant, which was owned by DIC Australia at the Auburn site. Buddco had in turn engaged Mr Tanner to clean out the ink tank.

The Court found that as the agitator was not electrically isolated, the risk of death or serious injury to a worker crushed by an anchor blade inside a holding tank was obvious and foreseeable.

In accordance with the requirements under the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999, the Court noted it was not satisfed Buddco had accepted responsibility for its actions and its role in the death of Mr Tanner and the injuries suffered by Mr Mehta.

The Court further found that while Buddco had a detailed written safety system in place for confned space work and tank cleaning, there was no standard or safe step-by-step procedure to ensure electrical isolation of the tank.

The Court noted that Buddco had no previous convictions, was otherwise of good character and was unlikely to re-offend.

Buddco has the right to appeal against the conviction and sentence.

In April 2021, DIC Australia Pty Ltd, was convicted and fned $450,000 for breach of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 in relation to this incident.