August 2008
Caterpillar Logistics has entrusted the safety of loading bay employees at its Tullamarine warehouse in Victoria, Australia, to Castell’s Salvo. Caterpillar’s goal was to implement a process on its loading bays that would protect its employees from unscheduled vehicle departure.
“Unfortunately, I’m well aware that this type of accident can occur,” explained Michael Forrest, warehouse supervisor. “Other Cat Logistics facilities in Europe and North America had implemented the Salvo system into their facilities with great success and the feedback was very positive.
“It’s innovative, it’s cost-effective and, more importantly, it’s easy to use. I know that our people are going to go home safe every night.”
Salvo attaches to an articulated trailer’s emergency airline coupling and prevents unscheduled trailer departures, or “driveaways”. Removal of the emergency airline automatically locks on the trailer’s brakes. When the Salvo Type 1 lock is fitted to the exposed coupling it releases a coded key. The key is inserted into the control panel of the relevant loading bay and enables the door to be opened or the dock leveller positioned. Specific system configuration can vary according to individual requirements.
Once loading has begun, the key is trapped in the control panel, putting the loader in complete control of the operation. The key is only released when loading has been completed and the door shut, allowing the Type 1 lock to be removed from the airline coupling.
July 2008
Industrial safety specialist Castell has been invited to present Salvo, its driveaway prevention system, to the Fork Lift Truck Association’s Safety Conference 2008. Jason Reed, Castell’s UK sales manager, will speak on the company’s behalf at Warwick University Arts Centre on 25th September.
Salvo was a finalist in the FLTA’s Awards for Excellence 2005. The FLTA describes the items to be presented at this year’s conference as “innovative products that have an important part to play in operational safety”. The safety conference began in 2003, with the aim of giving practical guidance on issues raised by – and directly affecting – fork lift truck drivers.
According to the FLTA – of which Castell is a member - over 400 serious injuries result from fork lift-related accidents every year, including around eight fatalities. It is estimated that 10% of these incidents occur during loading operations, often when articulated lorries prematurely leave their designated loading bay, creating a gap into which the fork lift then falls. Such an accident is known as a ‘driveaway’, and it was to eradicate precisely this kind of event that Castell developed its interlocking Salvo range four years ago. The recent HSE booklet ‘Warehousing and storage: A guide to health and safety’ recommends interlocks as a safe system of work to combat driveaways.
In essence, Salvo consists of a mechanical key-holding cylindrical lock, which attaches to the articulated trailer, and an electro-mechanical lock inside the warehouse, fitted to the loading bay door. Salvo links the trailer to the bay door during the loading of goods and forces drivers to immobilise the trailer prior to the door being opened. If the trailer is not locked in place, loading cannot begin.
Tickets for the conference are available through the FLTA website: www.fork-truck.org.uk
July 2008
The Doc Combo combines the features of a lockable document holder with those of a safety lockout station and group lockout box. Securely keeping both the permit to work documents and lockout equipment in the same unit, all aspects of lockout safety can now be controlled and monitored from one central location.
Up to 5 permit to work documents can be safety stored in the strong, clear Perspex cover sleeve, and 10 more in a compartment behind the unit. The strong, lightweight aluminium box behind is designed to securely hold keys, padlocks and Multi-Clasps (up to 15 total).
Once a permit to work has been completed it can be displayed in the cover sleeve. After the necessary padlock(s) for the job have been removed, the sleeve is then locked closed by up to seven supervisor’s padlocks. Once the intended isolation is in place, the padlock keys are dropped into the slot on top of the box. They will be securely held there until the work is complete – the supervisor then opens the Doc Combo again, and the lock-out can be safely removed.
The Doc Combo also comes with a pad of 10 permit to work documents, and can be arranged for left- or right-handed operation. The aluminium box is finished in a durable powder coating, has a tray for the dropped-in keys, and uses removable hooks to hold the padlocks inside.
June 2008
Industrial safety specialist Castell has revamped its Salvo range of driveaway-prevention products with third-party installers and distributors in mind.
The most significant new product to be introduced is a plug-and-play control panel. The PCB-based, software-programmable device is multi-voltage and able to power external traffic lights and beacons, greatly simplifying and speeding up the installation process.
Other additions to the range include Salvo Club – which secures rigid vehicles by locking the steering wheel in place – and Salvo Bollard, a modular barrier system compatible with many kinds of access lock. The latter can be interlocked with a component other than the door, allowing warehouse doors to be safely left open during the hot summer months. It is also suitable for loading bays that do not have doors.
A comprehensive user guide is also now available, providing all the information required for sales, distribution, installation and maintenance. Thanks to a manufacturing shift to product end-coding, lead times have been reduced from six weeks to just one.
According to the Fork Lift Truck Association – of which Castell is a member - over 400 serious injuries result from fork lift-related accidents every year, including around eight fatalities. It is estimated that 10% of these incidents occur during loading operations, often when articulated lorries prematurely leave their designated loading bay, creating a gap into which the fork lift then falls. Such an accident is known as a ‘driveaway’, and it was to eradicate precisely this kind of event that Castell developed its interlocking Salvo range four years ago. The recent HSE booklet ‘Warehousing and storage: A guide to health and safety’ recommends interlocks as a safe system of work to combat driveaways.
In essence, Salvo consists of a mechanical key-holding cylindrical lock, which attaches to the articulated trailer, and an electro-mechanical lock inside the warehouse, fitted to the loading bay door. Salvo links the trailer to the bay door during the loading of goods and forces drivers to immobilise the trailer prior to the door being opened. If the trailer is not locked in place, loading cannot begin.
June 2008
Industrial safety specialist Castell has been reminded of its company history by a visit from the founder’s granddaughter.
Anthea Hartley arrived at Castell’s headquarters in Kingsbury, north London, on 25 April 2008, to unveil a restored photo of her grandfather, James Harry Castell. She was then given a guided tour of the factory by managing director Tim Whelan, before witnessing the historical development of the company’s products, from the earliest interlock to current technologies like Salvo and Quadcam.
Representatives from Castell’s offices in the USA, Germany and China were also present.
April 2008
The world’s largest independent manufacturer of diesel engines has demonstrated its faith in Castell’s Salvo by installing the driveaway-prevention system at a second UK site. Cummins Ltd has now adopted Salvo at its Darlington site, following a recommendation from the company’s Daventry facility.
“It’s failsafe,” says Gary Summerson, Warehouse & Receiving Manager at Darlington, of the interlocking safeguard. “The improved level of safety, both physically – by locking access to the trailer braking system and interlocking the operation of the ramp - and through greater awareness by truck drivers and warehouse staff, pushes us closer to eliminating unintentional driveaways from the loading docks.”
The recent HSE booklet ‘Warehousing and storage: A guide to health and safety’ recommends interlocks as a safe system of work to combat driveaways. Prior to the installation of Salvo, Cummins Ltd relied on retaining drivers’ keys and using safety barriers.
Having reversed their trailer up to the relevant bay, drivers collect a Salvo Susie lock from the storage cabinet inside the office. As the lock is fitted to the exposed emergency air line coupling – effectively immobilising the trailer - it releases a uniquely-coded key. Drivers insert the key into the control box next to the bay and turn it, changing the traffic lights from green to red and allowing the dock leveller to be positioned. The key remains trapped in the control box until the dock leveller is returned to its starting position.
When loading / unloading has finished, the dock leveller is returned, the key released and the Salvo Susie lock removed.
March 2008
Pork Farms, one of the UK’s leading bakeries, has chosen to protect its employees from the threat of driveaways by investing in Castell’s Salvo. The safety system has been installed on all four loading bays at Pork Farm’s Palethorpes site in Shropshire, which handles an average of 130 vehicles per week.
“Salvo is easy to control and cost-effective,” comments Dave Bradley, Logistics Support Manager, when asked why his company decided to adopt the interlocking system. “We did look at wheel-locking devices but felt that Salvo was simpler and more manageable within our site processes.” Interlocking systems are recommended as a safe system of work to combat driveaways in the recent HSE booklet ‘Warehousing and storage: A guide to health and safety’.
Having reversed their trailer up to the relevant bay, drivers collect a Salvo Susie lock from the storage cabinet inside the office. As the lock is fitted to the exposed emergency air line coupling – effectively immobilising the trailer - it releases a uniquely-coded key. Drivers insert the key into the control box next to the bay, turning the traffic lights from green to red, and allowing the motorised door to be raised and the dock leveller positioned. The key remains trapped in the control box until the door is fully closed.
When loading / unloading has finished, the door is closed, the key released and the Salvo Susie lock removed.
January 2008
Castell has recently appointed Ms Nie Shaofeng (Sally Nie) as its marketing manager for China. Based in Shanghai, she will be responsible for sales and marketing strategy and development in the region.
Before joining Castell, Sally worked as the marketing manager of Spraying Systems Co., the world leader in spray technology. Her main responsibilities there included handling marketing strategy for China and south-east Asia, as well as sales and marketing training for branded products. Prior to that, she spent three years as assistant to the sales and marketing director of Dresser-Rand (Shanghai) Compressor, a subsidiary of Ingersoll-Rand.
Sally began her career at Shanghai Metal Forming Machine Works as assistant process engineer, having graduated from Harbin University of Science and Technology in 1997 with a degree in industrial design. Sally’s wealth of experience in the steel, papermaking, petrochemical and electronics industries will greatly benefit Castell’s market development in China.
Founded over 85 years ago, Castell Safety International Ltd designs and manufactures the world’s widest range of industrial safety systems and offers unrivalled experience in trapped key interlocking. The company currently operates from locations in London, Cincinnati, Cologne and Shanghai.
January 2008
Castell has appointed Warren Spiers as area sales manager for central England.
Warren holds a degree in mechanical engineering and a BTEC in manufacturing. Before becoming a qualified teacher, he completed an apprenticeship in machine tooling at Cincinnati Milacron (now Cincinnati Machine).
Commenting on his new role, Warren said: “I will be taking an applications-led, problem-solving approach. Customers want to work with people who can contribute to the solution, as well as simply sell it. I am excited about what I can give to Castell and where this will take us.”
Founded over 85 years ago, Castell Safety International Ltd designs and manufactures the world’s widest range of industrial safety systems. Designed to protect personnel working with dangerous machinery or in hazardous environments, the company’s products are innovative, reliable and suitable for the heaviest of applications. Available in a range of materials, including stainless steel and brass, they are proven even in dusty, corrosive and aggressive operating environments. All products conform to European safety standards.
December 2007
Copella Fruit Juices, part of PepsiCo, is the latest food industry member to invest in Salvo, Castell’s drive-away prevention system. The innovative safety device has been fitted to both loading bays at Copella’s factory in Boxford, Suffolk, safeguarding 50 deliveries per week.
The natural fruit juice company felt it unnecessary to consider any rival loading-bay-safety technologies. “Salvo has been very successful elsewhere in PepsiCo,” reveals John Watson, Copella’s Health & Safety Manager, “so it was logical for it be installed here too.” Salvo currently protects a total of 103 bays, across six sites, for PepsiCo’s Walkers Crisps.
Having reversed their trailer up to the relevant bay, drivers collect a Salvo Susie lock from its storage box inside the warehouse. As the lock is fitted to the exposed emergency air line coupling – effectively immobilising the trailer - it releases a uniquely-coded key. Drivers hand the key to the loader, who inserts it into the control box next to the bay, allowing the motorised door to be raised and the dock leveller positioned. The key remains trapped in the control box until the door is fully closed.
When loading / unloading has finished, the door is closed, the key released and the Salvo Susie lock removed.
