The managing director (MD) of a Black Country firm was fined £2,000 for neglecting control of legionella at the firm’s site. Ernest Jones of First Metal Finishers Limited did not put into execution a plan for controlling legionella in the company’s two cooling towers.

Warnings were issued by the water treatment contractors, but no system was put into place to put a check on the bacteria. He was accused of breaching Section 37(1), by virtue of Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act, 1974. Along with the fine, he was asked to pay £1,000 to cover costs.

Dudley magistrates were notified that in September 2008, inspectors had visited the company’s site in Cannon Business Park and issued a notice there to stop the cooling towers from operating, and another notice for improvement was sent to the management asking that a system be put in place to prevent the legionella bacteria. The towers had been in operation when the inspection was made, and the findings at the site revealed that the managing director had been at fault for not putting a system into practice for almost eight months. Even the required test checks and monitoring tasks had not been undertaken.

Health Safety and Environment inspector, Sarah Palfreyman, said that the risk was predictable and controllable and the company had received quotes from two water treatment companies, but in spite of the complaints from one of these two water treatment companies about the high legionella levels in the cooling towers, no preventive action had been taken by the management. She further commented that along with the Dudley area, there had been a number of outbreaks in recent years in other areas and the bacteria was a well-known risk.

The integration of good health and safety management systems is an essential principle of any business. Companies need to be sure that they are giving the correct instructions to employees with regard to health and safety issues. Training for the NEBOSH General Certificate in Occupational Safety and Health, from Workplace Law is designed to give managers and supervisors all they need to know to help their organisation find the best ways to lead and promote health and safety.