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Nestle fined after worker suffers injuries at chocolate factory

A Nestlé technician sustained multiple fractures and tissue damage after getting his arm caught in a Rolo machine at the company’s Fawdon factory.

Nestle confectionary factory, Fawdon, Newcastle

Nestle has been fined after an employee suffered life-changing injuries at its factory in Newcastle upon Tyne.

The incident happened on November 30, 2020 when the man was drawn into a roller mechanism on a conveyor machine.

South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court heard how the maintenance technician was investigating a problem on the conveyor belt of a machine used to make chocolate sweets. While checking the machine, his sleeve was caught in a roller, which dragged his left arm into the machine, trapping it between the roller and a conveyor belt.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation into the incident at Nestle’s factory on Rowan Drive, Fawdon, Newcastle upon Tyne found that the company had not properly assessed the risk created by the rollers under the conveyor belt and failed to guard the roller, which was a dangerous part.

It was foreseeable that employees would require access to this area and there was a clear risk of injury to employees coming into contact with this roller. Nestle had previously been prosecuted following a similar incident at its Halifax factory.

Nestle UK Ltd of City Place, Gatwick, West Sussex, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and was fined £800,000, ordered to pay costs of £7776.50 and a victim surcharge of £190 at South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court on October 19.

After the hearing, HSE inspector William Gilroy said: “This incident could easily have been avoided had Nestle properly reviewed the safety measures at its plant and its equipment to ensure that access to dangerous parts was prevented.

“Nestle were aware of this risk following a similar incident at its Halifax plant but failed to take appropriate action.”

BFFF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

The BFFF AGM is held each November and after last years’ meeting receiving positive feedback, we will be repeating the…

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SUSTAINABLE MANUFACTURING EVENT

25.10.2022 – Unit 3 Easter Ct, Europa Blvd, Westbrook, Warrington WA5 7ZB

This is a thought leadership event with a clear purpose – supporting you in decarbonising your factory, saving you money, and reducing your impact on the environment.

This event is being hosted by the Manufacturers’ Alliance, who have carefully selected professionals in their fields of expertise, who will all share, explain, and explore with you, how you can reduce your carbon footprint and save money.

Hosted at the ASG Energy Services manufacturing facility in Warrington, with 6 excellent speakers covering seven steps to sustainability…

  1. An Account of the Realistic Journey in a Manufacturer’s Mission to Net Zero
  2. Energy Supplier Cost Management and Energy Saving Equipment
  3. Legalities, Legislation & Regulations Governing Facility Modifications
  4. Calculate your Carbon Foot Print
  5. Offsetting Options
  6. Exploring the Link between Smart Manufacturing & Sustainable Manufacturing
  7. Details of the IETF’s next round of Funding Pot

 

Speaker 1 Tony Gresty, MD of Westbrook Industrial & ASG Services

Tony is the venue host of this event and is partway through his sustainability journey and will openly share his experience so far and his vision of the future.

Tony will share: A Case Study on his factory’s journey to Net Zero

  • Saving Energy (and money) practically through lighting and heating his factory efficiently
  • Harvesting his own solar power
  • Converting & powering up to an EV Fleet
  • Removing all gas from the site

Speaker 2. Gary Brandwood, MD of Perfect Sense Energy

Gary heads up a group of businesses delivering the design, supply & installation specialist commercial solar PV systems and LED Lighting. Formed in 2010 with a passion to drive energy cost & CO2 savings along with increased profits for manufacturers across the UK.

Gary will expertly explain how to Buy Better, Use Less & Generate your own Power

  • The Energy market & supply contract options
  • Energy saving tech including solar PV, LED lighting & controls
  • Expected timescale to see the return on investment

The Birth of ASG Energy Services resulted from a meeting of minds at the South Manchester MA Peer Group and developed from the provision of the afore-mentioned projects to bring Energy Services specifically to the Warehousing & Logistics Sectors.

 

Speaker 3. Claire Petricca-Riding, Partner and National Head of Planning and Environmental Law at Irwin Mitchell

Claire qualified as a Solicitor in April 2005, after initially training as a geologist. She specialises in environmental, waste and planning law. She regularly advises on environmental crime such as waste and water prosecutions, breach of consents and permits and statutory nuisance.

She specialises in planning, compulsory purchase law and Judicial Review. She has recently acted for local authorities seeking planning advice as well as providing advice and assistance to corporate clients and individuals seeking planning permission or objecting to neighbouring land use. She has recently advised a corporate client on the effects of the Mersey Gateway Bridge project.

Claire will clarify: Manufacturing Facility Modifications

  • The main legal barriers
  • Considerations for rented or owned property
  • Environmental regulations and governance
  • Legislation surrounding this area in general

 

Speaker 4. Chantelle Brandwood, Founder of Eco Offset

Leading a super successful environmental and sustainability consultancy firm, recognised for carbon emissions management, reduction and reporting along with being an IEMA qualified lead environmental auditor. Chantelle aims to help businesses to reduce their environmental impact and become a force for good. She is passionate about sustainability and believes every single one of us has the ability to make many small, impactful changes to help in the fight against climate change.

Chantelle will show you:

  • Why your carbon emissions matter and how you can start to measure them
  • Look at the role of carbon offsetting and its pros and cons in carbon reduction
  • The tangible benefits your business can enjoy whilst reducing your environmental impact.

 

Speaker 5. Roseanna May, Made Smarter Digital Transformation Specialist for The Growth Company

Roseanna graduated in media production in Liverpool in 2004, however she swapped the video camera lens for a different type of lens when she began working with facial recognition and identity management. This is where her passion for digital transformation kicked off and led to her work with the Made Smarter programme as a Digital Transformation Specialist.

Roseanna is helping to explore the link between smart manufacturing and helping SMEs to reach their net zero goals. There is a huge opportunity for manufacturers in the northwest to make a difference, and with programmes like Made Smarter driving momentum, the future looks bright!

 

Speaker 6. Annie Mfula, Head of Industrial Capacity Building for the IETF, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS)

The Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF) supports industrial sites with high energy use to transition to a low-carbon future. The fund targets existing industrial processes, helping industry to:

Cut energy bills by investing in more efficient technologies

Reduce emissions by bringing down the costs and risks associated with investing in deep decarbonisation technologies.

BEIS manages the IETF for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Funding is allocated through a competitive process aimed at supporting the highest quality and most transformational bids.

Phase 2 of the IETF provides grant funding for feasibility and engineering studies, and for the deployment of industrial energy efficiency and deep decarbonisation projects. The Autumn 2022 window has launched.

 

This is a Manufacturers Only Event

This event is for manufacturing leaders across the North of the UK and Wales who want to break through the boundaries of possibility with their sustainability strategy.

You have the option to attend either the am session (10:00am- 1:00pm, incl. lunch) or the pm session (12:00pm- 3:00pm, incl. lunch).

On the day…

  • We have a limited number of 25 seats available per session (50 in total)
  • There will be time for open discussions with the speakers at their exhibition stands
  • You can raise your sustainability queries with the experts in the room
  • A cross-over networking lunch is available for all to interact and seek additional support from the speakers and share thoughts with your peers.

Seats MUST be booked in advance by completing the form below and committing to a minimum donation of £25 for the purchase of your place. This is a not-for-profit event, and all ticket donations are to be paid directly to our chosen charity partner for this event, SolarAid.

Select a session and register below via the evet webpage https://www.manufacturersalliance.co.uk/sustainable-manufacturing-event/

 

 

COST OF LIVING CRISIS… WHAT WILL IT MEAN FOR YOUR BUSINESS?

What it will mean is that your customers, the Big Grocery Retailers, will be using every means possible to claw back those hard-fought CPI’s you may have secured in the last 12 months, or less. If history can teach us anything in the Grocery sector, it’s that when the going gets ‘even tougher’ than usual, you can rest assured that the outsourced forensic audit function that execute and deliver the historic review for the Grocers, that a mandate to deliver ‘at any cost’, will have been strengthened. What this means is more pressure on you to validate and settle claims in timeframes they impose, with partial, selected evidence designed not to reveal the truth, but to support an argument, or view – basically whatever they can make stick.

And oh boy, can they make it stick when the playing field and rules of the game are set by their historic actions and precedents set, via systems they control. Be under no illusion about what is coming down the pipeline… but you can be prepared and now is the time to prepare, not when the claims start to roll-in.

Salitix know how to play the game and we have unique insight and expertise in managing, countering and getting counter sales reconciliations validated and claims paid. But there is no time to lose for all those hard working brands who value their profits and intend to build their businesses prospectively. If you act now, Salitix can build the data-picture we need to reconcile and audit your 2020; 2021 and 2022 trading… to 100% accuracy.

Please get in touch to find out how we can protect and enhance your profits… today.

ADVICE FOLLOWING CONCERNS SURROUNDING CAUSTIC SODA AVAILABILTY

The BFFF has been alerted to concerns across industry regarding the availability of sodium hydroxide (E524) (caustic soda) which is commonly used for CIP systems as well as for cleaning trays and cookers etc

Following discussions at a recent Food Biocides Industry Group (FBIG) we can now bring you further detail and advice on this matter.

Firstly, this is not a new issue, but rather an ongoing one which the chemical industry has been managing since January 2022. So just as we are seeing shortages and rising prices for other materials, caustic soda can now be added to that list.

Several simultaneous factors are causing UK formulators to regulate supply. The challenge has predominantly been a result of the largest UK manufacturer in Cheshire restricting their plant capacity due to maintenance. Unfortunately, this plant has yet to come back fully on-stream and so roughly 80% of the UK’s requirement is having to be imported from Europe and distributed in bulk tankers.

However, even that has been fraught with problems – the shortage of suitably qualified drivers to move road tankers has meant loads are being transported via rivers and canals, but with the hot summer months causing lower water levels, load capacities have had to be reduced to cope.

Caustic production is also heavily energy intensive which, as we are all too well aware, has been subject to incredible price increases over recent months.

Hearing of these concerns, naturally, many of you may be asking the question ‘should I be building stocks? But the answer is absolutely not! – as far as possible you should keep to your regular ordering pattern to ensure that sufficient stock remains available for all. Increasing stock holding would simply place further undue stress on the supply chain resulting in the very thing we are trying to avoid – shortages!

Colleagues at Christeyns Hygiene, who are also members of FBIG, have very kindly allowed us to share with you a Technical Information briefing note which they’ve recently pulled together. We would highly recommend you take the time to review it as it not only explains the situation further but offers excellent advice as to how best to manage it.

In the meantime, if you do have anything which you wish us to pass back to Government in relation to this matter then please feel free to email us.

INNOVATIVE KINGSPAN BARRIER SYSTEM REVOLUTIONISING UK WAREHOUSE SAFETY

An innovative barrier system supplied by labelling and integrated safety solutions specialist, ASG Services is helping to revolutionise warehouse safety across the UK. ASG Services is one of just a handful of trusted UK suppliers for Kingspan’s SafeDefence Barrier Protection Systems.

The versatile system comprises a range of products purpose-designed to protect warehouse personnel, building structures and valuable stock from accident damage caused by impacts from material handling equipment. The system is reliant on a high-performance synthetic polymer that flexes on impact to safely absorb kinetic energy.

ASG Services’ managing director Tony Gresty described the technology as ‘game-changing’ when it was launched last year, and his optimism has not been misplaced.

“We expected the new system would help to revolutionise safety solutions for the modern warehouse but even we have been surprised by how popular the system is proving. Warehouse operators throughout the UK have been contacting us, requesting more information on the new system,” he said.

“Many of these are in sectors new to ASG Services, such a property and construction, as well as the chilled and frozen food sector, which is great for the business and opens up a wealth of new opportunities for us.”

The supply deal has seen ASG become a registered Kingspan Protection Systems Partner. The badge of honour is prominently displayed on the ASG website as well as other material related to the barrier systems.

The versatile SafeDefence Protection System comprises a range of products including posts, rails, barriers, goalposts and gates. The ability of the system to be quickly installed in new-build warehouses as well as retrofitted to older facilities, is thought to be one of the major reasons for its popularity.

The reassurance of a complete warranty from Kingspan, already widely recognised and respected for its high-performance insulation and building envelope solutions, is also helping with peace of mind for many operators.

The Kingspan products are manufactured from solid high-performance synthetic polymer, or a flexible protection technology known as FLEXsafe. All the products are located and installed independent of the elements to be protected, removing the risk of damage from impact transmission.

“The special polymer technology used to manufacture the product means it will last longer compared with other protection systems, poses fewer problems for installation and ensures concrete surfaces will not be damaged. The materials used in the SafeDefence system also align with the ASG Services ethos of reversing climate change. Typically, the synthetic polymers used in the system are made from 40% recycled polymer material, while the system itself is 100% recycable.

“The longevity of the system offers a good return on investment and will maintain the safety of people and assets for much longer,” added Mr Gresty.

For additional peace of mind, all Kingspan SafeDefence Protection Systems have been subjected to robust independent impact testing by the University of Engineering and Architecture in Zaragoza, Spain to determine the force the systems can withstand, together with their respective deflection.

The crash test analysed the energy supported by the products and their impact resistance behaviour, and the test results have indicated that Kingspan Barrier Protection Systems products offer better impact protection than all others on the market due to their resistance and elasticity.

ASG is promoting early consultation on the system so it can recommend the best solutions. With an on-site inspection it will be able to determine operational need and identify which system offers the best protection to people and products.

It is primarily targeting the warehousing and logistics sector, as well as 3PLs and manufacturers. However, given the interest in the new system, it continues to scope new sectors.

For more information on Kingspan SafeDefence Protection Systems from ASG Services, visit www.asgservices.co.uk/protection

Member Benefits

Exclusive Partnership deals on key products and services:

  • BFFF energy deals and rates
  • Vypr member deals and introduction
  • Defib Plus deals
  • Company Shop – membership
  • Mentor – MHE training health check

Exclusive access to networking opportunities and events:

  • Meet the Buyer events (retail & foodservice)
  • Annual Business Conference with networking dinner
  • Specialist H&S and Technical Conferences
  • Special interest groups (packaging, frozen food temperatures)
  • Annual Lunch
  • Awards Night
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Sponsorship Packages

We offer a range of sponsorship opportunities to BFFF members across our events throughout the year, with flexible packages that can be tailored to suit your business objectives.

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