contractors to carcinogenic fibres at their plant in Swansea.
Vale Inco Europe Ltd appeared at Cardiff Magistrates' Court on 6th
August 2009 and were fined £12,000 and ordered to pay costs of £28,000
after pleading guilty to four charges under the Control of Asbestos
Regulations 2006 in regards to refurbishment work being carried out by
a contractor, A-Weld at the company's premises in Clydach.
The company had carried out asbestos surveys on the buildings, but not
on the interior of plant and equipment. Subsequently, asbestos
insulation material within the reformer furnace was disturbed and
broken, giving rise to powder and fibres, posing a greater risk.
Even after workers discovered a white material they suspected was
asbestos, the site was not isolated and work continued as normal,
while they waited for the results of the sample's analysis confirmed
that the material was asbestos.
Andrew Knowles, HSE Principal Inspector said: "There are numerous
failures in this case, including the failure to assume that asbestos
would be present in the reformer furnace unless it could be proved
that it was not. Knowledge that asbestos insulation was present would
have resulted in a licensed contractor being used to remove the
material and prevented these workers coming into contact with asbestos
at all".
"Another important aspect was the failure to provide asbestos
awareness training for employees, which is a specific requirement
where asbestos may be present in a workplace".
"Asbestos is the greatest single cause of work-related deaths in the
UK. Every week, 20 tradesmen die from asbestos related diseases,
including mesothelioma - a cancer of the lining of the lung caused by
asbestos".
"The failures in this case were entirely preventable and the defendant
fell far short of the high standards required. This should serve as a
warning to others about the dangers of asbestos and the legal
requirement to manage it properly."
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