Two firms have been fined a combined £110,000 after an engineer was crushed by heavy machinery and left paralysed from the waist down.
James Jamieson was pinned against a wall by a 1.8 tonne section of an air handling unit while working on replacing the system at Aberdeen’s Beach Leisure Centre.
His employer, Aberdeen-based Sparks Mechanical Services (SMS), was fined £72,000 at Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday for failing to ensure his safety.
And Perthshire firm MJ Ventilation, which was hired as a sub-contractor, was fined £48,000 for its role in the accident.
The court heard that the health and safety breach took place on Monday September 3, 2012, on what was Mr Jamieson’s first day back at work following a holiday.
Sparks had been contracted by Aberdeen City Council to assist with replacing the ventilation system at the leisure centre.
On the day in question, roof panels had been removed and a crane hired to lift new pieces of equipment into place.
While most of the old kit had been cut up into manageable pieces and removed from the centre by hand, workers on site decided to take advantage of the crane’s presence by using it to lift the 1.8 tonne air handling unit out of the building.
Fiscal depute, Shona Nicholson, said: “Six men were lifting it when it snagged and fell backwards towards the wall.
“It trapped James Jamieson, who was doubled over with his head facing his feet.
“He spent months receiving specialist care in Glasgow, and is now paraplegic.
“He had to be rehomed to a suitable flat, and his frienships and social life have suffered as he is embarrassed by his situation.”
The court heard that Mr Jamieson is also receiving counselling and has been diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder.
Sparks admitted “failing to ensure the health, safety and welfare of an employee as far as was reasonably practicable”.
Court papers said Mr Jamieson was “severely injured, permanently impaired and permanently disfigured” as a result of the company failing to ensure a “safe system of work”.
MJ Ventilation accepted a charge of failing to ensure that individuals outwith its employment were not put at risk.
Representatives from Sparks afterwards said the incident remained a huge source of regret and that bosses had no quarrel with the penalty.