Penalties Rise Over Conveyor Belt Deaths

The conveyor belt at Point Lumber’s timber yard in Timaru

Courts in New Zealand have imposed more than $800,000 in penalties since mid-March in response to workers being killed on unsafe conveyor belts in the manufacturing industry, the latest being Timaru director and his company Point Lumbar Limited. They were prosecuted over the death of a young worker.

In November 2022 the worker aged 23 was working near a conveyor belt when he became entrapped in its drive roller and died.

WorkSafe’s investigation found there was no guarding along the length of the conveyor belt, or in the area the victim was drawn in and no risk assessment had been done. Other machine safety defects were also found on site during the investigation.

In 2017 a safety consultant recommended safeguarding the conveyor belt but Point Lumbar failed to implement the recommendation.

“If necessary, the manufacturing sector should engage a qualified expert to ensure your machinery is adequately guarded” the WorkSafe spokesperson said.

Manufacturing is the focus of WorkSafe NZ’s new strategy because there is persistent harm in the sector.

Visit WorkSafe New Zealand for more information.