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We discussed in previous posts the importance of guaranteeing forklift safety as well as the different ways through which we can improve accident prevention levels within our industries and work spaces. Today, we would like to expand on these areas and explain the multiple benefits of a very useful and easy to deploy tool: the PCS Solution.

 

Especially designed to ensure the physical integrity of pedestrians in crossings but applicable to any parts of the journey in industrial spaces, the PCS Solution warns the forklift by previously installed traffic lights the presence and eventual crossing of pedestrians in its work area. This way, the operator handling a load and concentrating on the driving of heavy vehicles, is able to notice the presence nearby of a pedestrian and can take precautionary measures, significantly reducing accidents and risks of running employees over.

The implementation of the PCS system very simple. Apart from the traffic lights, pedestrians circulating in the facility must carry small tags – similar to a keychain -, which will emit light signals when detected by a previously installed RFID activator. That same activator oversees the sending of the signal to the traffic lights, indicating in this manner the presence of a person in the place in question.

All these elements are very easy to implement and a especially durable and robust.

 

This system is generally used in pedestrian crossing areas, pedestrian and forklift intersections, spaces with a lot of forklift movement, loading and unloading areas and merchandise storage spaces, among others.

 

Keen to find out more about the PCS Solution?

You can read about in our website, or contact us directly about this or any other of our products which might be of your interest.

 

The image tends to repeat itself regardless of the industry we talk about – forklifts travelling from one place to another, braking, loading, accelerating, braking, unloading… again and again. Forklifts are like ants moving through our facilities, key pieces of our daily work and for many, a second home.

Keeping always in mind the importance forklifts have in our daily work life, it’s important we keep them in excellent working condition, complying with all established safety guidelines and constantly making of them – and our industry in general – a safer place.

In this post we’d like to highlight some general safety features of these industrial vehicles as well as discuss several tools that can be added to make them even safer.

 

Ignacio Bereciartu, ULMA’s After Sales Service Manager recently explained in an article published on the website www.manutencionyalmacenaje.com that his firm conducts a comprehensive periodic review to strengthen the safety of these machines. This analysis includes all the checks and adjustments which – according to the NTP 715 of the National Institute of Safety and Hygiene at Work – a forklift requires to be considered in optimal conditions, both in the functional as well as in the safety aspects of the vehicle.

Bereciartu clarified that “there is no strict norm, as in the rest of the countries, regarding the periodic inspections that forklifts must comply with” and said that his firm analyses: the driving position, the lifting elements, wheels, micros and sensors, braking systems and signalling systems, together with other safety indicators, such as license plates, operators’ manuals and CE marking.

 

He also highlighted some of the safety measures implemented in the forklifts which constantly help prevent accidents in ULMA’s workplace. For example, more and more vehicles have presence detection systems which paralyse the wheel of the forklift and the elevation of the mast as soon as it senses the driver is no longer sitting – or more precisely, when he or she lifts his or her rear from the seat.

In addition to this, devices are used to keep the forklift halted until the driver puts on his or her seatbelt. That system is not designed as in a normal car – its goal is to ensure that in a risk situation the operator does not jump out of the cabin instinctively, an action which would expose him or her even more.

The forklift’ automatic lighting – which lights up when the forklift is started – and a device for detecting blind spots or speed limitations are also some of the developments highlighted by Bereciartu in the aforementioned article, and safety feature we should all contemplate incorporating into our work vehicles and spaces.

 

This is also our goal at Claitec. Some of our developments provide forklifts with various tools to operate more efficiently and safely. The BS (Blind Spot) Solution, for instance, indicates who has the right of way at intersections by means of traffic lights and warning lights previously installed in industrial spaces. Experience with our clients shows that once the BS Solution is installed, the risks of running over pedestrians are minimised and collisions between trucks are reduced in areas of limited visibility.

Similarly, the NAS (Narrow Aisle) Solution provides additional safety in narrow corridors. Highly requested by our customers, this high-performance product uses a traffic light to warns drivers when another forklift is also circulating in a narrow aisle. This development is useful for high shelving areas and reduced spaces, especially for retractable and trilateral forklifts.

Finally, the LSA (Low Speed Area) System, regulates and limits the speed of the forklift in loading areas, helping reduce risks and preventing accidents.

 

To find out more about our products, we invite you to visit our website: claitec.com.

If you are looking for further details on a specific topic or if you have any questions for us, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

 

Pablo Picasso once said:

creativity exists, but it must find you working”.

 

At Claitec we not only share the great master´s wonderful words of wisdom but we try to apply them to our routines as reality keeps us constantly in our toes and force us to be creative and up-to-date. Creativity helps us find solutions to the challenges faced by our clients and friends, encourages us to always go further, improve ourselves and put ourselves to the test to find new ways to innovate and create.

 

A perfect example of this creative spirit is the case we want to share with you in this post. It involves our work with the prestigious Swedish multinational IKEA – a leading pioneer in its field worldwide.

IKEA had been using the PAS Solution for a long time in more than the 70 forklifts operating in one of its main warehouses in Valls (Tarragona), operated by FM Logistics. The system in this facility focused on protecting pedestrians when forklifts approached them. The system detected the proximity of a pedestrian, warned the driver and caused the vehicle to start moving slower to protect operators from any potential impact or risk or from being run over. But in this case, and after using the system for a while, IKEA´s Safety Director in Tarragona consulted us about the possibility of incorporating a new functionality to the PAS System – an inhibitor of the speed limitation function.

 

The IKEA team wanted the speed limitation feature to be activated by default in a forklift in the presence of a nearby pedestrian, having the possibility – by means of a button – to maintain its normal speed at the time.

 

Thanks to this new feature, the driver notices the presence of an operator and takes control of the situation, being able to circulate normally after having inhibited the speed limit. This method allows time to be gained in the displacement, the productivity of the vehicles is greatly improved, the drivers are given more control, and the safety of the pedestrian being detected by the forklift is always maintained.

 

This new development has the unique particularity that the push button that the driver carries to maintain the speed – after the pedestrian is detected – incorporates an automatic timer. This makes the inhibition effective only for 5 seconds, as a form of prevention and to always maintain the attention of the driver in his or her surroundings. If the driver needs to keep his speed longer, he or she will have to press the button again and will given another 5 seconds.

The system is designed in such a way that it cannot be sabotaged and the speed control cannot be permanently inhibited. This adaptation is now available as an accessory for other PAS users who want to incorporate it.

If you would like to have more information about this or about another of our products and services, don´t hesitate to contact us.

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