Failure of components led to prosecution

One man died and another suffered serious injuries in a construction accident at Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 when a concrete slab collapsed in 2005 during the construction of a multi-storey car park.

Threaded Shoring Adaptors (TSAs) were used to secure parts of the temporary works structure, but the catastrophic failure of 2 of these caused the collapse and were found to be part of a sub-standard batch manufactured for SGB Services Ltd 2 years previously.

SGB Services Ltd had failed to ensure that the adapters they supplied were able to carry maximum loads. Principal contractor Laing O’Rourke Infrastructure Ltd failed to have adequate systems in place to inspect the quality and condition of the adapters before they were used in safety-critical applications, and had failed to remove sub-standard TSAs from use when warned.

Laing O’Rourke Infrastructure Limited was fined £75,000 with £75,000 in costs, SGB Services Ltd was fined £30,000 with £30,000 in costs.

Article created by Editor. (info@safetynetscotland.co.uk)