A computer company has claimed in the High Court it suffered losses of $3 million when the wrong filters were installed during a preventive maintenance programme at its plant in Limerick.
Analog Devices, which manufactures integrated circuits and employs 1,400 at Raheen Industrial Estate, says it was forced to destroy about 1,250 silicon wafers and suffered serious business disruption as a result of the maintenance error in August 1999.
It is claiming compensation under two insurance policies it held with the Zurich Insurance Company, Eagle Star House, Ballsbridge Park, Dublin, and the American Guarantee and Liability Insurance Company (AGLIC) of Schaumburg, Illinois in the US. Both insurance companies deny liability and the case before Mr Justice Kelly is expected to last two weeks.
The insurance companies, for whom Mr Paul Gallagher SC and Mr Paul Gardiner SC appear, plead they are not liable for any losses sustained as such losses are specifically excluded under certain clauses in the policies.
Suspended term for damage to car
A Dublin man has been given a three-month suspended jail sentence for damaging a neighbour's car in a row over obscene phone calls to his teenage daughters.
Martin Foley, Cashel Avenue, Crumlin, Dublin, denied using a steering lock to damage Ms Tina Doyle's car during a confrontation outside her home on August 7th last year.
Dublin District Court heard the incident arose out of a number of phone calls and letters from Ms Doyle's nephew, Paul Hynes (17), to Foley's daughters Rachel and Amy.
Judge James McNulty was told Foley had 38 previous convictions. He noted that he had been out of trouble for 12 years but he had to look at whether Foley had "reverted to old ways".
Restaurant fined for breaches of hygiene
The operators of a restaurant at Dublin Zoo have been fined €1,500 for breaching food hygiene regulations.
Compass Catering International Ltd, trading as Stripes Zoo Café, admitted 12 breaches which were discovered during an inspection by an environmental health officer last July. They related to the condition and management of the premises. Dublin District Court yesterday was told the café had since been closed for a major renovation programme.
Deli fined for selling raw chicken
A fast-food delicatessen which sold an uncooked chicken burger to a customer was fined €100 yesterday and ordered to pay €825 costs.
The Spar, Cranley Centre, Naas Road, Dublin, denied selling food unfit for human consumption to Mr Manus McGinley and a colleague, who bought "gourmet" chicken breast sandwiches on May 1st last. Mr McGinley said when he started to eat the burger at his office nearby he realised the taste was not right. He found the chicken to be pink and jelly-like.
He phoned the Cranley Centre and was told by a duty manager that she would return his call. No call came and he contacted the health board whose environmental health officer, Ms Jennifer Shawton, also examined the burger and found the chicken was raw.
Ms Shawton said the chicken should have been thawed, preferably overnight, before being cooked, to ensure the core would reach the required temperature when cooked.
Mr Dermot Aherne, a food safety trainer for the Cranley Centre, disputed this and said the Government's guidelines recommended cooking from frozen. They had carried out their own tests which had shown that this was the proper way to cook this type of food.
The court heard the chicken product had been first introduced a few weeks before this incident and staff had been fully trained in cooking it.
Judge James McNulty said while there was an enormous burden on outlets to ensure food was properly cooked and served, this was the price they must pay for profit. He suspected that human error had led to it not being cooked properly and he did not attach any blame to the manufacturers or the suppliers.