2010 death of Adelaide desalination plant worker Brett Fritsch won't go to trial Brett Fritsch, who died during the construction of the Adelaide Desalination Plant, in July 2010. THE family of desalination plant accident victim Brett Fritsch will be spared the anguish of a trial because his employers will admit responsibility, a court has heard. Union officials have welcomed the guilty plea, but warned the lack of a trial means the truth about Mr Fritsch' death may never be revealed. Mr Fritsch, 35, was struck by a steel beam which fell from a crane at the at the Port Stanvac worksite on July 16, 2010. His employer at the time, Ferro Con (SA) Pty Ltd, and its director Paolo Maione were charged, in the Industrial Court, with breaching workplace safety laws. The Port Stanvac desalination plant during construction. Picture: James Elsby Court documents alleged Mr Fritsch died because he was working in a "soft sling" restraint rather than heavy, reinforced chain. It was further alleged the sling was being used because Ferro Con had been told not to mark, chip or damage the "marine-grade paint" on the plant's walls. Ferro Con has since gone into liquidation. The AdelaideAqua desalination plant at Port Stanvac. In court today, lawyers for the liquidators and Mr Maione said their clients wanted to plead guilty to the breaches. They asked for an adjournment to collate all the evidence so it could be presented, during submissions, in a manner that "will not bombard the court." The case was adjourned until May. Outside court, lawyer Steve Dolphin - who represents both Mr Fritsch's wife and the CFMEU - said the guilty pleas were a mixed blessing. "Certainly the guilty plea will alleviate the stress associated with a drawn-out trial," he said. Our concern is it will also mean we won't get to the bottom of what happened in this tragic death. This may well be a case that's best decided by a coronial inquest at a later stage. CFMEU assistant secretary Darren Roberts said soft slings were still being used inappropriately at work sites across Australia. "Within the last month, a soft sling was used in another fatality in Tasmania," he said. Another construction worker has lost his life through inappropriate use of a soft sling. For the protection of someone's precious paint, construction workers are dying.