An Ontario court has fined General Motors of Canada $275,000 as a result of injuries a worker sustained at its Glendale Avenue facility in January 2023.
An Ontario court has fined General Motors of Canada $275,000 as a result of injuries a worker sustained at its Glendale Avenue facility in January 2023.
A court has fined General Motors of Canada $275,000 after a worker was injured while maintaining a CNC machine at its St. Catharines plant in 2023.
On Jan. 24 of that year, two workers were conducting what’s known as a “probing routine” inside a large computer numerical control (CNC) machine at GM’s facility on Glendale Avenue.
The machine is a type of automated manufacturing equipment controlled by pre-programmed software.
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A release from the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development said the workers used the company’s controlled access procedure to put the machine in safe mode but neglected to ensure an interlock door remained in the open position.
Because of this, the machine was not in safe mode, and when one of the workers pressed start on a hand-held control terminal once finishing the maintenance work, the machine sprang into automatic mode, injuring the worker.
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Niagara Emergency Medical Services paramedics treated a man suffering significant injuries to his upper and lower body.
An Ornge air ambulance then transported the worker, who was in his 50s, to an out-of-town hospital.
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GM has since revised its procedures to prevent workers from fully entering CNC machines and requiring all probing to be done from the outside.
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Following a plea of guilty for failing to take every reasonable precaution to protect its worker, a $275,000 fine was imposed by Ontario Court of Justice Judge Mark J. Curtis. The court also imposed a 25 per cent victim surcharge.
— With files by Bill Sawchuk
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