Balfour Beatty fined over Birmingham University scissor lift death

Igor Malka, aged 62, was in the scissor lift installing cladding with another worker during the construction of a new engineering hall at the university on 7 January 2020 when it was pushed over by a nearby crane, causing him to fall 10 metres to the ground, said the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

HSE’s investigation found that contractors had been moving hydraulic units into place with an overhead gantry crane when it struck the scissor lift containing the two men. Photograph: HSE

Malka lost his life and the other worker, Edmund Vispulskis, was left with spinal injuries and broken ribs, and had to have pins inserted in his pelvis and thigh.

HSE’s investigation found that contractors had been moving hydraulic units into place with an overhead gantry crane when it struck the scissor lift containing the two men.

The incident could have been prevented if Balfour Beatty had implemented better controls and put in place better communication between the workers, said HSE. There was no lift supervisor present at the time.

“This was a tragic incident that led to the death of a worker with another being seriously injured and still experiencing difficulties today as a result,” said HSE inspector Gareth Langston. “Lifting operations must be properly controlled – they must be planned, with plans adhered to.”

Balfour Beatty pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 8(1) of the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998. The company was fined £285,000 and ordered to pay costs of £21,768.88 at Birmingham Crown Court on 16 September.

A Balfour Beatty spokesperson said the company looks back on the incident with “great sadness and deep regret”, noting that the two men were working for one of its subcontractors on the construction of the University of Birmingham’s National Buried Infrastructure facility.

The spokesperson added: “The health and safety of our workforce will always be our primary concern. This tragic event has prompted further improvement to our processes, and we have shared the lessons we have learnt across our business.”