International nickel producer Vale Inco had contracted A-Weld to carry out maintenance work at its Clydach plant in Swansea, Wales. Inco had conducted asbestos surveys for most of the buildings on its site, but hadn't included the plant's equipment or interior.

While the contractors were stripping away corroded metal cladding and brickwork surrounding a reformer furnace, they ruptured asbestos insulation material, releasing carcinogenic fibres and dust.

Though the maintenance workers had not received asbestos awareness training, they suspected the material was asbestos and sent a sample to be tested. But the site was not isolated and they carried on working.

The court heard Inco sought advice from licensed asbestos specialists and damped down the area, but it was too late to prevent exposure and the problem was further exacerbated by the workers removing their overalls in an area where no-one was wearing protective equipment such as masks.

HSE principal inspector Andrew Knowles said the company should have assumed the furnace insulation contained asbestos unless it had proven otherwise.

He said, "Knowledge that asbestos insulation was present would have resulted in a licensed contractor being used to remove the material and prevented these workers coming into contact with asbestos at all."

"Another important aspect was the failure to provide asbestos awareness training for employees, which is a specific requirement where asbestos may be present in a workplace."

Inco admitted four breaches under Regulations 4(3), 5, 10(1) and 11(1) of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006, for failing to sufficiently assess asbestos on site or alternatively to assume it was present around the furnace; not training employees and contractors in asbestos awareness; and failing to prevent asbestos exposure.

At Cardiff Magistrates' Court on 6 August 2009, the company was fined £12,000 with £28,000 costs.