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01.12.2015

Baldwins guilty of corporate manslaughter

UK crane rental company Baldwins Crane Hire has been found guilty of corporate manslaughter and two breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act, following the death of its operator Lindsay Easton, at the Scout Moor wind farm in Edenfield, East Lancashire in 2011.

Chairman Richard Baldwin and managing director Wayne Baldwin had pleaded not guilty to all three charges, on the company's behalf, but it was found guilty of all three.

The five week trial at Preston Crown Court arrived at its verdict after hearing that Easton, was driving the 500 tonne All Terrain crane down a steep road away from the wind farm when the crane's brakes failed. After managing to negotiate one bend in the road, the crane was going too fast to take a second bend, he had no option but to try his luck on an escape road where he collided with an earth bank.

During the HSE investigation following the accident it emerged that a number of the crane’s engine braking systems were disconnected, broken or not fully working. Seven of its 16 wheel brakes were not functional and the other nine were worn or damaged.
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Baldwins Crane Hire has been found guilty of corporate manslaughter and to breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act following the death of an operator at the Scout Moor wind farm in Edenfield, East Lancashire.


DS John McNamara of Lancashire Police, said: “There was a lack of organised preventative maintenance and as such Mr Easton sadly lost his life.”

Baldwins will be sentenced on December 22 and faces the prospect of an unlimited fine.
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Baldwins Crane Hire will be sentenced on December 22



Vertikal Comment
This is not the easiest time to be commenting on what is a very emotional subject for the UK crane industry. Lyndsey Easton was a well-liked and respected crane operator. He had left Baldwins in the past, apparently due to safety concerns, and had voiced concerns that something like this might happen. We can only be relieved that it did not occur on a public road where many people could have lost their lives in addition to Easton.

The tragic incident does raise some practical issues that the industry as a whole and others should take to heart and learn from. Road worthiness needs to be taken seriously by everyone, as calls for an annual MOT third party type inspection are sure to increase on the back of the findings from this trial. It is best that the industry moves forward firmly on this subject in advance of new rules being imposed. The better crane companies already pay due attention to this aspect of crane maintenance, but there are a good few older cranes out there on public road each day that could be better.
The design of escape roads might also benefit from a fresh look, given that heavy cranes all have low cabs that cannot withstand a high impact into a high bank with up to 100 tonnes behind them.

The court’s findings, released today make for unpleasant reading if you are in or associated with the industry. While these failings are not representative of the industry as a whole it does reflect on all us.


Comments

Tim that's great for you but one small thing doesn't change anything. It's a reality that hire rates are too low and so are profits therefore corners are taken every day. Can you honestly say that you have had all your operators put through manufacturer training on all your cranes. I'm guessing the answer is no like everyone else. The problem with crane companies in the UK is that they sit on the morale high ground when someone else has an accident but then pray it wasn't them as they are doing exactly the same. It's the culture that has to change

Dec 8, 2015

Crane01
As I said on the first comment of this article,we invested in the rolling road quite a few years ago,obviously with MOTs in mind,but also to keep our fleet up to the highest standards.

Dec 8, 2015

Big Jib
Big Bubba in the scrubbs is looking forward to getting a visit from Damien in the near future! 😘

Dec 7, 2015

binman
The industry must push for some form of MOT. The self policing system does not work.

Dec 7, 2015

Andrew you are so right with the hire rates. Rates in the UK are so low and everyone wants new equipment that it's always safety that takes a bashing. Something has to give whilst I appreciate its not an excuse owners are under pressure to stay in business otherwise they get slated ( mainly in this website) for not doing so that they compromise or at least some people in the organization do.

Main clients should stope being cheapskates and protect the industry by paying the right money

Dec 4, 2015

In reply to Lewis Major :

This is undoubtedly a 'top down' problem .
Lack of even routine maintenance is an inherent problem within the industry , poor hire rates result in little available down time for machines to be worked on . Crane hire companies just don't have the financial resources to stand the cranes for maintenance to be carried out . Tragedies like this will continue to happen unless a form of MOT is introduced .

Dec 4, 2015

Lewis Major
Shall we all just wait until the 22nd and listen to the comments that the Judge makes when he hands sentence down, he will un-doubtfully comment on whether he thinks its a top down problem or just a few bad eggs.

Dec 2, 2015

The deciding factor here is IF the company directors have been negligent. It was Baldwins crane hire that was prosecuted not the company directors. If the company has procedures but they were not followed the. It won't be the directors that are negligent. You are all just on the hate Baldwins bandwagon and should not listen to gossip

Dec 2, 2015

The deciding factor here is IF the company directors have been negligent. It was Baldwins crane hire that was prosecuted not the company directors. If the company has procedures but they were not followed the. It won't be the directors that are negligent. You are all just on the hate Baldwins bandwagon and should not listen to gossip

Dec 2, 2015

Can I respectfully request that all bear in mind that Mr Eastons family may be reading your posts.

As a Company owner I have a responsibility to the people I work with to ensure they are safe at work. The court has done its job; will the sentencing reflect the severity of the outcome; and will the controlling mind of the business be punished. Time will tell all.

Dec 2, 2015

Crane expert
If the plane crashed because of massive failings within Virgin airlines on safety standards then yes the directors should go to jail, I'd say you are the one that needs a lesson within Buisness.

Dec 2, 2015

Crane nan. You talk like your nan, so based on that if a virgin plane crashes Richard Branson should go to jail. I think you need a reality check of what actually happens in business. The company should be fined but you clearly do not understand business.

Dec 2, 2015

cfk88
reality check You have to understand that a company director is ultimately responsibly for failings of this manner. "I didn't know" is not a defence. This just shows the attitude the company has towards their fleet and the safety of their operators. Of course this may be a different case now but once again that's no defence for past failings. A company director you should be able to shoulder the extra responsibility and if not maybe they shouldn't be a take that position in that company.

Dec 2, 2015

Crane expert
Reality check as your name suggests this might be a good thing for you to start doing, a company will always reflect the attitude of its directors and senior management, even tho the 2 Baldwins may have never said directly to disconnect any brakes the attitude of get that crane out working at any cost is what has led to this tragic accident. And the comment about lock them up is fair in my opinion as a man has lost his life due to the bad attitude and failings of these men.

Dec 2, 2015

Do you all believe that Wayne and Richard Baldwin told someone to disconnect brakes, I'm sorry but having worked there I can tell you that they would not have done that. More likely a mechanic or manager cutting corners to get the job done. This is a tragic accident and the company as an entity should be fined heavily even though this doesn't bring the operator back but to suggest that both Mr Baldwins should do time is merely because you don't like them. If we all decided everyone we didn't like went to jail then most of you on this website would be in jail

Dec 2, 2015

Crane expert
CFK88 you have hit the nail on the head, also that they don't mind flaunting safety just to get a job done.

Dec 2, 2015

cfk88
WOW upping the game. are you really trying shift the fault of serious management failings down the line to the op.
Its clear that baldwins had a disregard for maintaining their fleet "During the HSE investigation following the accident it emerged that a number of the crane’s engine braking systems were disconnected, broken or not fully working. Seven of its 16 wheel brakes were not functional and the other nine were worn or damaged."
you like them because they are cheap.

Dec 2, 2015

Crane expert
Upping the game when in my comment did I mention the men that work for Baldwins? Maybe you need to up you're game with your reading skills. The comment was aimed at the directors.

Dec 2, 2015

upping the game
Oh my god Crane Nan.....
What a load of rubbish, there are a lot of good people that work at Baldwins, I use them and they do a great job for me. On time, on cost and professional service with good kit.

All aside why cant people just work together to learn from mistakes to make sure this doesn't happen again, no one expects to go to work and not come home, but would you drive a car home with no brakes?

Dec 2, 2015


First of all RIP and condolences to Mr Easton's family. Nobody goes to work, with the intention of not coming back home after a hard days graft. Regarding MOT checks in New Zealand cranes are treated no differently to any other commercial vehicle and must have a certificate of fitness (CoF) every 6 months. By the sounds of this it was a totally avoidable accident and therefore those reponsible for the lack of maintainance need to be held to account and have this mans blood on their hands.

Dec 2, 2015

Crane expert
Firstly let me express my deepest condolences to Mr Eastons family at this very difficult time.

Right guys lets not beat about the bush Baldwins are getting exactly what they deserve, biggest bunch of xxxxxx xxxxxxx in the industry. Even tho they have started to sort the company out its been at the cost of a life.

I for one hope to see them go down for what they have done.

RIP Mr Easton.

Dec 1, 2015

Michael Brown
I cant see why a specially adapted MOT cant be brought in, obviously plant by its very nature doesn't meet current MOT criteria, but as in this case the basics of brake efficiency need to be applied, iv had cranes on NMT's rolling road & found some wheels & axles not anywhere near peak brake efficiency, without that equipment how can you possibly know if braking is deficient?? Until it becomes so deficient there's an accident?? But here again we have a lost life.

Dec 1, 2015

Crane01
My thoughts are for Lyndsey and his family on what must be another terrible day for them.

Just a comment on the MOT debate.
I have never understood why cranes never had MOT's
until I tried to put a personal number plate on our 200 ton Demag in 1993.
The DVLA told me I could not have the plate as the crane didn't have an MOT.When I suggested I would bring it to the nearest test station,they told me that was impossible as there were no rolling roads heavy enough to take it.
It wasn't until about 10 years ago we decided to install that 20 ton rolling road and found it was the most invaluable piece of equipment in our workshops.

Dec 1, 2015