Merseyside Manufacturer Sentenced Following Severe Machinery Incident
A Merseyside animal-feed manufacturing firm has been handed a substantial fine following a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation that uncovered severe, systemic failings regarding machinery safety. Factory Services UK Limited appeared at Warrington Magistrates' Court, where the company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The prosecution followed a devastating incident on 18 March 2025, which left a maintenance engineer with life-altering injuries.
The court was told that the worker, Daniel Slinger, was on a night shift at the company’s site on Moorgate Road, Knowsley Industrial Park, when he was tasked with inspecting an operational conveyor system. While working on the equipment, his arm was drawn into the moving machinery through an unauthorized access point—a hole that had been cut directly into the conveyor housing. Unable to free himself, the lone worker was forced to wave frantically at a nearby CCTV camera to signal for help after becoming trapped.
HSE Investigation Reveals Long-Standing Safety Oversight
An investigation launched by the HSE inspectorate revealed that the hazardous modification on the conveyor had been present and accessible for many years. Furthermore, inspectors discovered a second conveyor on the premises featuring a similar unauthorized access gap. Despite routine internal management walkarounds, audits, and site inspections, these glaring safety gaps were never identified or rectified by senior staff.
Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector Ian Betley emphasized the preventable nature of the tragedy: “Mr Slinger suffered devastating and life-altering injuries as a result of this preventable incident. Had the correct protections been in place, he would not have been exposed to the dangerous parts of a running conveyor through a hole cut into the machine.” He added that while the company technically possessed written risk assessments and safe systems of work, they were fundamentally unfulfilled and unenforced on the shop floor.
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Court Penalties and Wider Industry Warnings
Magistrates sentenced Factory Services UK Limited to a fine of £160,000, alongside additional prosecution costs of £4,728. In the wake of the incident, the firm retrofitted a secure fixed mesh guard and installed an emergency stop button at the exact location of the failure. However, regulatory bodies have stressed that retroactive fixes do not substitute for proactive hazard identification and robust daily supervision.
This case forms part of an ongoing enforcement focus by the UK regulator concerning machinery guarding, isolation protocols, and lone working risks. Industrial employers are continually reminded that safety documentation is meaningless if practical enforcement and frontline verification are neglected. Ensuring that staff across all tiers are properly educated on risk awareness and safe operational boundaries is essential to preventing catastrophic workplace harm. For comprehensive guidance on compliance, risk assessment implementation, and certified safety instruction programs, employers and safety officers can visit Abertay Training at https://www.abertaytraining.co.uk.