The Case

WorkSafe Victoria v Polymaster Pty Ltd (2023)

Polymaster Pty Ltd is a manufacturer of liquid storage products, such as tanks, for industries including agriculture, mining, food and beverage, chemical and water authorities. Polymaster’s factory is located in Swan Hill (workplace).

Polymaster employed a trades assistant to make metal tags for the lids of tanks and perform welding tasks as required. The employee was required to use a machine, among others, known as a belt sander, which is used to sand and smooth out pieces of metal.

The wide belt sander is approximately 1 metre high, with the sanding belt at the front about 200 millimetres wide. Metal is placed against the rotating belt to grind the metal down. There was a resting plate at the bottom of the belt.