Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 21st May 2026 Issue no. 1211
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Tissue manufacturer fined after worker injured hand unblocking machine
A tissue manufacturing company has been fined after an employee was seriously injured while clearing a machine blockage at its factory in Blackburn.
The 24-year-old, a lead machine operator, was working for WEPA Professional UK at its premises on Waterfall Street in March 2024. During the manufacturing process, a tissue blockage occurred in the rollers of the machine and the worker instructed his colleague to 'jog' the machine while he cleared the paper by hand.
‘Jogging’ - also known as ‘inching’ - refers to the momentary energisation of a motor to move it in small, precise increments, only while the operator holds down a button.
However, as the man did this, his right hand became trapped in the roller. Although he managed pull his hand out of the machine, he had sustained crushing injuries to it.
An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive found that although tissue blockages were a regular occurrence at the factory, (happening around two - three times a day) there was not a safe system of work in place for unblocking the tissue. The HSE also found that the risk assessment in place at the time of the incident - which had last been reviewed in 2021, had identified that formal safe operating procedures were needed to reduce risk. Crucially, this upgrade to procedures had never been actioned by the company.
WEPA Professional UK pleaded guilty to breaching section 2(1) the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 etc at Burnley Magistrates Court last month. The company was fined £60,000 and ordered to pay costs of £5,107.
"A young worker was left with a serious injury as a result of an accident which could easily have been avoided,” notes HSE principal inspector Emily Osborne. "There was no safe system of work in place for the task as well as a lack of instructions and training to ensure workers knew how to carry out the task safely.
"Instead, the firm's failures led to the man suffering a severe injury to his right hand."
Employers must ensure that equipment is properly isolated from all power sources and that systems are regularly monitored and reviewed to prevent inadvertent contact with dangerous parts of machinery. HSE guidance on safe use of work equipment highlights the importance of following safe isolation and lock-off procedures before carrying out any maintenance or unblocking work on machinery at:
21st May 2026