A South Wales-based firm has been fined £100,000 for safety failings at a timber framed construction site…
An unexpected health and safety inspection has led to a firm receiving a hefty fine for safety failings.
J G Hale Construction Ltd, based in South Wales, has been fined £100,000 after the site in Blaenavon was found to be unsafe.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found 54 timber frame houses under construction at the site did not have adequate measures in place to prevent or control a potential fire.
Inspectors found that the houses under construction were at the same stage broadly speaking, with little fire protection in place.
Furthermore, there was insufficient site management control, as well as poor fire safety equipment in place. This included a lack of planning for the event of an emergency.
Inspectors also found workers were at significant risk of being injured by construction vehicles on site.
The HSE issued Improvement Notices relating to fire and vehicle safety, which were complied with following two further visits.
The firm was fined £40,000 and £60,000 after pleading guilty to breaching Regulations 27 and 29 of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 at Cwmbran Magistrates’ Court. Costs of £4,633.78 and a statutory surcharge of £120 were also levelled at the firm.
After the hearing, HSE inspector Liam Osborne said: “Hale Construction had been given plenty of warnings about fire-safety and traffic risks in the recent past, including from HSE.
“Timber-frame houses are perfectly safe once they’re finished and protected, but when under construction they can be very dangerous. Stringent fire-safety standards need to be in place well before the build starts, and then maintained and monitored”.
