A Melbourne plastics factory has been fined after a spate of workplace incidents, including two people suffering serious burns when a worker tried to extinguish a fire with unlabelled methylated spirits.
A & J Australia Pty Ltd was sentenced in Melbourne's County Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to 16 charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
The fire started when a mechanical engineer was using a LPG torch to melt plastic from the blades of a plastic granulator machine when it caught fire.
Despite having fire extinguishers and a hose nearby, the worker tried to put out the blaze using an unlabelled container of clear liquid – which was later found to be methylated spirits – igniting a fireball causing severe burns to the worker and the sole company director.
The company was fined $425,000 over the incident.
It was also fined $75,000 for failing to ensure persons other than employees were not exposed to health and safety risks arising from their conduct after a machine operator was struck on the head suffering concussion and a head wound requiring stitches.
The court heard that in November 2021, the machine operator had stopped a blow moulding machine to remove a blockage, when a part weighing about 40 kilograms detached and fell 2.3 metres on to his head.
The company was also fined $5000 on charges of failing to notify WorkSafe of an incident and failing to ensure an incident site wasn't disturbed, after a technician lacerated his finger in a machine and required surgery in July 2020.
