Latest news with #MuhammadAfiqSenawi
New Paper
06-05-2025
- New Paper
SMRT Trains fined $240,000 over accident that killed technical officer
Rail operator SMRT Trains was fined $240,000 on May 5 over an accident at Bishan Depot in March 2020 that killed one of its technical officers. The company was convicted of an offence under the Workplace Safety and Health Act, as it had failed to take reasonable measures to ensure its employees' safety at the depot in Bishan Road. On March 23, 2020, Mr Muhammad Afiq Senawi, 30, and a colleague were using a hydraulic press machine (HPM) to replace some train-related components. Mr Afiq had placed a component into the machine, and activated the piston to carry out the task. However, he had failed to remove a similar older component. Due to a pressure build-up, a spacer rod that weighed nearly 3kg flew out of the machine, broke through the fencing gate near the machine, and struck his face. Mr Afiq was rushed to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where he died of face and chest injuries at 10.15am that day. Coroner Christopher Goh later ruled his death to be an unfortunate misadventure. Among other things, an investigation later revealed that SMRT Trains had failed to install a pressure gauge for the HPM after dismantling it for repairs. On May 5, Ministry of Manpower prosecutor Kimberly Boo told the court that the spacer rod had not been secured to any other component, adding: "There was thus a hazard of the spacer rod displacing from its position and shooting out during operations." She also said that a maintenance work record dated June 11, 2018, stated that the hydraulic pressure gauge was damaged. As a result, there was no indication of the pressure of the HPM available when it was in operation. The damage was reported to an engineering maintenance manager, who instructed for the gauge to be dismantled. However, he later overlooked its reinstallation. Another work record dated Dec 16 that year stated that the pressure gauge was sent for calibration. Court documents stated that the most recent maintenance of the HPM prior to the tragedy was carried out on Jan 2, 2020. The gauge was still not installed then. Ms Boo said: "(SMRT Trains) had failed to ensure that a pressure gauge, which was a safety measure identified in the HPM operation manual, was installed for the HPM. Once the activating lever was pulled by the operator, the piston would continually move downwards to generate a downward push motion. "Even though HPM operators were not required to monitor the exact pressure involved in the operation, the presence of a pressure gauge would provide an indication to operators on whether the force applied in any installation or removal had increased disproportionately." SMRT Trains had also failed to limit the pressure setting of the HPM, which would reduce operators' exposure to a force far beyond what was necessary for its intended use, thus lowering the risks of harm the operators are exposed to. SMRT Trains was charged in court in 2023.
AsiaOne
06-05-2025
- AsiaOne
SMRT Trains fined $240,000 over accident that killed technical officer, Singapore News
SINGAPORE – Rail operator SMRT Trains was fined $240,000 on May 5 over an accident at Bishan Depot in March 2020 that killed one of its technical officers. The company was convicted of an offence under the Workplace Safety and Health Act, as it had failed to take reasonable measures to ensure its employees' safety at the depot in Bishan Road. On March 23, 2020, Mr Muhammad Afiq Senawi, 30, and a colleague were using a hydraulic press machine (HPM) to replace some train-related components. Mr Afiq had placed a component into the machine, and activated the piston to carry out the task. However, he had failed to remove a similar older component. Due to a pressure build-up, a spacer rod that weighed nearly 3kg flew out of the machine, broke through the fencing gate near the machine, and struck his face. Mr Afiq was rushed to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where he died of face and chest injuries at 10.15am that day. Coroner Christopher Goh later ruled his death to be an unfortunate misadventure. Among other things, an investigation later revealed that SMRT Trains had failed to install a pressure gauge for the HPM after dismantling it for repairs. On May 5, Ministry of Manpower prosecutor Kimberly Boo told the court that the spacer rod had not been secured to any other component, adding: 'There was thus a hazard of the spacer rod displacing from its position and shooting out during operations.' She also said that a maintenance work record dated June 11, 2018, stated that the hydraulic pressure gauge was damaged. As a result, there was no indication of the pressure of the HPM available when it was in operation. The damage was reported to an engineering maintenance manager, who instructed for the gauge to be dismantled. However, he later overlooked its reinstallation. Another work record dated Dec 16 that year stated that the pressure gauge was sent for calibration. Court documents stated that the most recent maintenance of the HPM prior to the tragedy was carried out on Jan 2, 2020. The gauge was still not installed then. Ms Boo said: '(SMRT Trains) had failed to ensure that a pressure gauge, which was a safety measure identified in the HPM operation manual, was installed for the HPM. Once the activating lever was pulled by the operator, the piston would continually move downwards to generate a downward push motion. 'Even though HPM operators were not required to monitor the exact pressure involved in the operation, the presence of a pressure gauge would provide an indication to operators on whether the force applied in any installation or removal had increased disproportionately.' SMRT Trains had also failed to limit the pressure setting of the HPM, which would reduce operators' exposure to a force far beyond what was necessary for its intended use, thus lowering the risks of harm the operators are exposed to. SMRT Trains was charged in court in 2023. [[nid:481768]] This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.
Straits Times
05-05-2025
- Straits Times
SMRT Trains fined $240,000 over accident that killed technical officer
SMRT technical officer Muhammad Afiq Senawi was killed after rod weighing nearly 3kg hit his face in 2020. PHOTO: ST FILE SINGAPORE – Rail operator SMRT Trains was fined $240,000 on May 5 over an accident at Bishan Depot in March 2020 that killed one of its technical officers. The company was convicted of an offence under the Workplace Safety and Health Act, as it had failed to take reasonable measures to ensure its employees' safety at the depot in Bishan Road. On March 23, 2020, Mr Muhammad Afiq Senawi, 30, and a colleague were using a hydraulic press machine (HPM) to replace some train-related components. Mr Afiq had placed a component into the machine, and activated the piston to carry out the task. However, he had failed to remove a similar older component. Due to a pressure build-up, a spacer rod that weighed nearly 3kg flew out of the machine, broke through the fencing gate near the machine, and struck his face. Mr Afiq was rushed to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where he died of face and chest injuries at around 10.15am that day. Coroner Christopher Goh later ruled his death to be an unfortunate misadventure. Among other things, an investigation later revealed that SMRT Trains had failed to install a pressure gauge for the HPM after dismantling it for repairs. On May 5, Ministry of Manpower prosecutor Kimberly Boo told the court that the spacer rod had not been secured to any other component, adding: 'There was thus a hazard of the spacer rod displacing from its position and shooting out during operations.' She also said that a maintenance work record dated June 11, 2018, stated that the hydraulic pressure gauge was damaged. As a result, there was no indication of the pressure of the HPM available when it was in operation. The damage was reported to an engineering maintenance manager, who instructed for the gauge to be dismantled. However, he later overlooked its reinstallation. Another work record dated Dec 16 that year stated that the pressure gauge was sent for calibration. Court documents stated that the most recent maintenance of the HPM prior to the tragedy was carried out on Jan 2, 2020. The gauge was still not installed then. Ms Boo said: '(SMRT Trains) had failed to ensure that a pressure gauge, which was a safety measure identified in the HPM operation manual, was installed for the HPM. Once the activating lever was pulled by the operator, the piston would continually move downwards to generate a downward push motion. 'Even though HPM operators were not required to monitor the exact pressure involved in the operation, the presence of a pressure gauge would provide an indication to operators on whether the force applied in any installation or removal had increased disproportionately.' SMRT Trains had also failed to limit the pressure setting of the HPM, which would reduce operators' exposure to a force far beyond what was necessary for its intended use, thus lowering the risks of harm the operators are exposed to. SMRT Trains was charged in court in 2023. Shaffiq Alkhatib is The Straits Times' court correspondent, covering mainly criminal cases heard at the State Courts. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
CNA
05-05-2025
- CNA
SMRT Trains gets S$240,000 fine after officer killed by rod that shot out of machine
SINGAPORE: SMRT Trains was ordered to pay a fine of S$240,000 (US$186,000) on Monday (May 5) for workplace safety failures in the case of an employee who died while working at Bishan Depot. Mr Muhammad Afiq Senawi, a 30-year-old technical officer, died of face and chest injuries after a rod shot out of a hydraulic press machine and struck him. He had been working at SMRT for more than two years at the time of his death on Mar 23, 2020. SMRT pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to take necessary measures to ensure the safety and health of its employees, which carries a maximum fine of S$1 million. On the day of the accident, Mr Afiq was operating a hydraulic press machine with another technical officer at a maintenance workshop in Bishan Depot. Mr Afiq put a new part into the machine without first removing an old part. This resulted in the new part being misaligned and pressure accumulating in the machine. The rod, which was not engaged in the machine, ejected, penetrated the metal fencing around the machine and hit Mr Afiq's lower jaw. He was treated on site and then in a hospital, where he died. SMRT admitted that it failed to put in place a pressure gauge after the machine was dismantled for repair, even though this was a safety measure identified in the machine's operating manual. The machine's pressure gauge was recorded as damaged in June 2018 and an engineering maintenance manager ordered it to be dismantled. He later overlooked its reinstallation. It was not necessary for workers to monitor the exact pressure when operating the machine. The Ministry of Manpower's prosecutor Kimberly Boo, said, though, that a gauge would have given the workers an indication of any disproportionate increase in force when the machine was in operation. SMRT also failed to limit the maximum operating pressure of the machine through the use of pressure valves, which would have reduced the workers' exposure to a force way beyond what was needed for the machine's intended use. The maximum pressure of the hydraulic press machine was about 98 tonnes, which exceeded the pressure necessary to perform the task of removing and installing a part to the machine that day, which was about 1.4 tonnes and 3.3 tonnes respectively. The train operator further failed to ensure that the pieces in the machine were engaged and interlocked to prevent displacement of any single one. The company had earlier identified the hazard of a part slipping or shooting out of the machine in its risk assessment of May 2018. During sentencing arguments, SMRT's defence counsel said the accident was not the result of a flagrant disregard for safety, but represented an "extreme scenario" for which the possible safeguards were not in place. She stressed SMRT's safety culture, track record of operating the hydraulic press machine for more than 20 years without incident, and that the company had remained free of work-accidents for the past five years. She also said that SMRT's workplace injury rate was lower than the average in Singapore's transport and logistics industry, with last year's figure at 648 cases for every 100,000 workers yearly since 2020. However, Ms Boo pointed to five of SMRT's previous workplace safety convictions for accidents between 2010 and 2020, which formed what she called a "pattern" of offending. These included a S$230,000 fine for a December 2018 accident that resulted in a worker's leg being amputated, as well as a S$400,000 fine after two workers died after being hit by a train in March 2016. Ms Boo said this gave rise to an "irresistible inference" that previous calls for robust safety practices and culture in the workplace were not heeded and she urged the court to send a strong signal.
