Description of Incident
Whilst installing a program onto a spare laptop, the engineer noticed that the keyboard was bulging (Image A).
This is a typical sign of battery swelling inside the laptop. The swelling of the battery is caused by gas build-up from internal battery degradation, which can lead to fire or toxic gas release.
The engineer immediately powered off the laptop and handed it over to the shift supervisor.
Findings:
- The laptop was an old laptop that had been utilised for a previous project – the degradation of the battery was due to age
- Recognising that other similar laptops were still in use, these were also inspected. One additional laptop exhibited the same issue and was handed over to the shift supervisor
- The engineer's attention to the task and equipment led to early detection and mitigation
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