A wristwatch saves lives
In recycling installations, the reusable materials are separated according to type and pressed into bales for onward transportation to the processing plant – for employees a workplace with a high safety risk.
With channel baling presses, work-related accidents can frequently be fatal due to an employee falling into the press shaft, becoming incapacitated and no longer able to stop the press process.
Standard ripcord systems cannot prevent the unthinkable in these cases. How then can companies avoid these accidents, most of which end in fatalities.
Non-contact safety equipment is the answer in this regard. The Operator Protection System GSG202A, based on RFID, from U-Tech is an electronic safety system, which in conjunction with the PSM (Personal Protection Module, transponder) is worn by the person to be protected, triggers an immediate shutdown of a machine as soon as the person with the PSM enters the danger zone.
Accident scenario
The following scenario could occur: An employee falls on a conveyor belt, which moves towards the feed opening and the press chamber. He or she reaches the defined danger zone upstream of the feed opening. Fortunately, the employee is wearing a PSM transponder on his or her wrist. The conveyor belt comes to a standstill and the employee is saved. A simple scenario that saves lives.
More safety through European standards
For years, the Health and Safety Executives have increasingly paid attention to safety at the workplace. European working groups were involved in the development of European standard DIN EN 61496-1, which describes the specifications for the “Safety of machinery – Electro-sensitive protective equipment; Part 1: General requirements and tests”. There is thus additional pressure on companies to comply with the specified safety at work requirements. An additional new standard, DIN EN 16252 specifies that companies must fit railings or other safety devices on conveyor belts at a minimum height of 1.10m. Where this is not possible, a “sensitive safety device” must be installed, because the workflow would otherwise be disrupted.
The IFA, the German Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, certified the Personal Protection System from U-Tech in accordance with the European standard DIN EN 61496-1. It is the only certified system in this sector and thus provides companies with the possibility of complying with the safety requirements of the Health and Safety Executives.
Transferability to other industries
The GSG202A is suitable not just for recycling companies. It is transferable to other industries, where employees must work in dangerous areas, which can be scanned and thus secured by the antenna module.