// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
Two firms guilty over man killed by falling window
Mick Ferris was killed outside The Corniche apartments on Albert Embankment
Two companies have been found guilty of health and safety breaches after a coach driver was killed by a falling window pane.
Mick Ferris, 53, died when glass weighing 130kg fell 300ft (90m) from a penthouse flat at The Corniche tower block on Albert Embankment in central London in October 2018.
St James Group Ltd and specialist contractors Lindner Prater Ltd were convicted at Inner London Crown Court of "failing to discharge a duty" under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. The firms will be sentenced on 24 September.
Foster + Partners, the architecture firm behind The Gherkin, and engineering consultants Wintech Ltd were cleared of the same charges.
During the trial, the court heard the "extraordinary" fact that a window panel had already fallen from the same development in August 2017, and the design was not substantially changed as a result.
Prosecuting, Gordon Menzies said: "It's reasonably practicable for clever people to do a simple thing and design a window that doesn't fall out once every year."
The Corniche is listed as an "exclusive riverside address" made up of 252 two, three, and four-bedroom apartments
St James Group took up the role of "principal designer" in 2015, which meant it had a "duty to co-ordinate matters in relation to health and safety", the court heard.
Foster + Partners, which is behind some of the world's most iconic buildings, was responsible for the initial designs of the Corniche.