Siemens fined ￡900,000 after cable strike

摘要

A principal contractor and its subcontractor have been ordered to pay fines and costs totalling almost ￡1.1 million after a worker's retina was damaged when his excavator struck a 275kV cable during construction works at a substation. The incident occurred at Whitegate Substation in Chadderton, Manchester. National Grid had contracted Siemens Energy to upgrade the substation from an Air Insulated Substation to a Gas Insulated System. Siemens Energy subcontracted Volkerlnfra, which specialises in the design and installation of high voltage underground cable systems, to carry out cabling works. The excavator driver was part of a team of agency workers that was subcontracted solely to Volkerlnfra and worked under Volkerlnfra's RAMS (risk assessment method statements), information, instruction and control.