Kimberly says Terex calibrated accident machine

Kimberly Access has released a statement in response to Terex’s safety notice on the Z-137/70 boom, stating that it had not attempted to calibrate the secondary boom angle sensor on the machine involved in the recent fatal accident and that only Terex personnel had carried out the procedure.

It added that preliminary findings of an independent investigation into the accident had raised concerns about the machine separate from the issue of the secondary boom angle sensor.

Kimberly said it was issuing the statement in response to Terex AWP’s safety notice issued last week in which the manufacturer said that some machines in the field had not been calibrated according to service manual procedures. Terex issued the safety notice following the accident at Kimberly’s Iver depot on 5 June.

The statement,issued by Kimberly through its lawyers, Keoghs LLP, said; "Kimberly wishes to make it clear that at no time has it ever attempted to calibrate the secondary boom angle range on the 135/70 involved in the accident and Kimberly's service records show that this procedure was only ever carried out hy Genie personnel."

The statement added; "Preliminary findings of appointed independent experts have raised concerns regarding the machine’s integrity that are distinct and separate from the concerns raised by Genie in their press statement.”

Kimberly’s fleet of 25 Z-135/70s remain grounded, said the company, “until these concerns have been fully explored and until Kimberly is totally satisfied that the 135/70s are safe to operate or have been made safe by modification.”

The UK access rental company continues to cooperate with the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) in their ongoing investigation.

Terex’s safety notice required “a simple inspection of the secondary boom angle. Completing this inspection procedure will confirm whether the secondary boom angle sensor is properly calibrated and the machine is safe to use."

Terex said in the notice that the Z-135/70 is safe to use. “As our thorough investigation has progressed, the integrity of the Genie Z-135/70 machines in the field continues to be confirmed.

“Genie Z-135/70 machines are safe to use as intended provided the machine is in proper working order, the operators are properly trained, and the owners/operators follow the warnings and instructions provided by Terex AWP, which are located on the machine.”

Since Kimberly released its statement, Terex AWP has been asked if it would like to comment, but no response has been received so far.