Ipswich tobacco firm Honeyrose Products Limited, at Alpha Business Park, fined £32,000 after machinery safety failures

An Ipswich-based tobacco manufacturer has been fined £32,000 after failing to put measures in place to prevent access to the rotating blades of a mixer.

Whole-body access was possible for employees using the ribbon blade mixer at Honeyrose Products Limited, which presented a risk of serious personal injury through coming into contact with the rotating blade.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the firm at Alpha Business Park, in White House Road, failed to put appropriate measures in place to ensure access to the dangerous parts of machinery was prevented.

HSE guidance says employers should consider how their workers use machinery and have adequate maintenance arrangements in place to ensure it remains safe to use.

Honeyrose Products Limited pleaded guilty to a breach of Regulation 11(1) of The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and Regulation 3(1) of The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.

The company was fined £32,000 and was ordered to pay costs of £12,583 at a hearing at Suffolk Magistrates’ Court, in Ipswich, on Thursday.

After the hearing, HSE Inspector Julia Beavis said: “Companies should be aware that HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against those that fall below the required standards.”