Worker falls to death at manufacturing plant, East Riding Sacks Ltd fined £533K
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has fined East Riding Sacks Ltd £533,000 following the death of 51-year-old Mark Pinder at the company’s facility on Full Sutton Industrial Estate in Stamford Bridge, near York. On February 11, 2023, Mr. Pinder was operating a production line when a blockage occurred. While standing on stationary metal rollers to clear the blockage, he was struck by part of the machine that had been activated, causing him to fall approximately three meters from an unguarded edge to the factory floor below. He died at the scene from his injuries.
An HSE investigation found that East Riding Sacks Ltd failed to implement a safe system of work for isolating the sack-making line and clearing blockages. It was also found that risks related to working at height were not properly identified or mitigated. Workers were routinely clearing blockages without proper training or isolation procedures, and some used the conveyor belt as a shortcut by climbing over handrails rather than using stairs. The company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and was ordered to pay an additional £6,066 in costs at Hull Magistrates Court on 30 April 2025.
What people are saying:
In a recent quote, Elliot Archer, HSE inspector, said, “Every year, a significant proportion of accidents, many of them serious and often fatal, occur as a result of people accessing dangerous parts of machinery and working at height.
“Where access beyond machinery guarding and safety devices is required for the removal of blockages, robust isolation procedures to remove all sources of power should be implemented alongside a suitable safe systems of work.
“Had these been in place, and the recognition of work at height being undertaken been flagged by the company, with appropriate controls implemented, this incident would have been avoidable.”
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About the Author
Alexis GajewskiAlexis Gajewski
Senior Content Strategist
Alexis Gajewski is a manufacturing writer and editor with nearly 20 years of experience covering the people, practices, and technologies that keep industrial facilities running. For more than a decade, she served as Senior Content Strategist for Plant Services, creating content for plant managers, engineers, and maintenance professionals on a variety of industrial topics.
During her tenure, Alexis worked to develop the brand’s digital strategy and helped launch and produce Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast. She also created The Lighter Side of Manufacturing, a weekly blog that explored the inventive and sometimes humorous side of the industry.
Alexis co-founded Influential Women in Manufacturing, a recognition program that honored 49 women in its first two years, earned an industry award for Best Product Launch, and received a proclamation from Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and a commendation from U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth.
She also led newsroom operations and development at a large media company where she set editorial standards, developed training curriculum, and helped support AI adoption for more than 150 editors across 80+ brands spanning manufacturing, industrial processing, automation, and more.
Additionally, Alexis works as a freelance writer and editor, and her areas of interest include continuous improvement, the skilled workforce, and the role of emerging technology on the plant floor.
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