A company has been fined £150,000 after a 21-year-old employee was killed.

Haywards Heath-based Flowserve (GB) Ltd admitted breaching health and safety laws that led to the death of Philip Locke on May 7, 2008.

Lewes Crown Court was told yesterday that Mr Locke received fatal injuries when carrying out a pressure test on a high pressure valve at the company’s Burrell Road site.

It is believed that during the test, the vent valve became detached from the machine and hit Mr Locke at high speed, causing fatal chest injuries.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive found the company had not carried out an adequate risk assessment and had failed to recognise the risk of parts, such as the vent valve, detaching during the pressure testing.

The vent value had not been installed correctly and there should have been a guard on the back of the machine, which would have prevented the vent value injuring Mr Locke when it separated from the machine at high pressure.

The company pleaded guilty to breaching section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and were also ordered to pay full costs of £66,838 HSE Inspector Russell Beckett said: “Had Flowserve (GB) Ltd carried out a specific risk assessment on the machine it would have realised the process was unsafe.

“The company could easily have modified the system of work and the death of Mr Locke could have been prevented.”