Lawyers for Bendigo company Big Hill Cranes, Cobram business A-1 Engineering, and New Zealand engineer Andrew Buchanan appeared at the Bendigo Magistrates' Court on Wednesday.

The court heard one of the lawyers believed a committal hearing - which would determine if there was enough evidence to take the matter to trial in a higher court - could run as long as three weeks.

But due to the coronavirus pandemic, it is not known when a committal hearing will take place.

Big Hill Cranes, A-1 Engineering and Mr Buchanan were charged by WorkSafe after a 59-year-old man was crushed to death and another man was seriously injured at a decommissioned cheese factory on December 6, 2017.

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No pleas have been entered.

Big Hill Cranes is charged with four counts of failing to ensure that people other than employees were not exposed to risk arising from its conduct.

A-1 Engineering is facing six charges of failing to provide and maintain a safe working environment for employees by failing to provide a safe system of work, and two charges of failing to provide and maintain a safe work environment by failing to provide supervision to enable employees to perform their work safely.

Meanwhile, Mr Buchanan is charged with four counts of failing to ensure a safe workplace, as a person in charge of a workplace.

The matter was adjourned for further committal mention on June 10.

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