Chipboard company fined £2 million after a Scottish employee passed away from severe burns

After a worker at a chipboard company's Scottish facility died from severe burns received while cleaning hot ash from equipment, the company was fined more than £2 million.

One of the biggest manufacturers of chipboard in the world, Norbord Europe, was found guilty of two health and safety violations at its plant in Cowie, Stirlingshire, in an early November unanimous jury decision at Perth Sheriff Court.

Managers assigned George Laird, 64, and several other coworkers the task of utilising a high-pressure hose to remove hot ash from a gas duct that was located above a wood dryer in July 2016.

The Health and Safety Executive's inquiry into the facility revealed a number of violations, according to Scotland's prosecution office, the Crown Office (COPFS), and Norbord was found to have failed to create a secure working environment for those tasked with cleaning the machinery.

“Employees were left to devise their own methods of working,” COPFS said. “Employees were exposed to risk of personal injury from falling ash within the combustion chamber since its installation at the site on 1 October 2014. There were several near misses involving other employees working during that time.”