Castell UK News - a Halma PR news blog

Netto, one of the UK’s fastest growing supermarkets, has installed Castell’s driveaway prevention system Salvo at its distribution centres in Pontefract and Daventry, safeguarding a total of 53 loading bays.

“It’s worked very, very well,” explained Mark Glover, warehouse and distribution manager at Pontefract. “Castell’s rep came to show the loading team how the system worked and managed to convince the team of the safety aspects of the solution. It was paramount that the team bought into the concept.”

Management at the 300,000 square foot main facility at Pontefract, which handles 18,000 pallets a week, had been searching for a safety system to reassure warehouse staff. Following a word-of-mouth recommendation, it witnessed Salvo in action at a Christian Salvesen site and decided to favour the interlocking approach over two more expensive options that it had also been considering. The HSE booklet ‘Warehousing and storage: A guide to health and safety’ recommends interlocks as a safe system of work to combat driveaways.

Having reversed their trailer up to the relevant loading bay, drivers collect a Salvo Susie lock from the control box at the side of the bay. 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. This changes the traffic lights from green to red and allows the dock leveller to be positioned. The key remains trapped in the control box until the dock leveller is returned to its starting position. The key can then be released, and the Salvo Susie lock removed and returned to the control box.

Graham & Brown, the UK’s leading wallpaper manufacturer, is protecting warehouse staff at its Padiham distribution centre, near Blackburn, with Castell’s driveaway prevention system Salvo. The 136,000 square foot site dispatches an average of 45,000 cartons, or 500,000 rolls of wallpaper, a week.

Following a driveaway incident from which a loader escaped without serious injury, the company realised that it needed to install a more advanced safety system than the verbal method on which it had been relying. John King, operations manager, and Joe Wright, health and safety manager, visited a near-by frozen food supplier to witness Salvo in operation.

“It only took us half an hour to be convinced that it was exactly what we were looking for,” said Joe. “We’re now considering installing Salvo at our distribution centres in France, the Netherlands and the US.”

Having reversed their trailer up to the relevant loading bay, drivers collect a Salvo Susie lock from the warehouse operative. 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. This causes an amber beacon to flash and allows 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.

The HSE booklet ‘Warehousing and storage: A guide to health and safety’ recommends interlocks as a safe system of work to combat driveaways.

Industrial safety specialist Castell presented its driveaway prevention system Salvo to the Fork Lift Truck Association’s Safety Conference at Warwick University on 25th September 2008.  Jason Reed, Castell’s UK sales manager, spoke on the company’s behalf.

Jason highlighted the need for a product like Salvo by referring to the Health and Safety Executive’s estimation that 20-25 percent of all factory and warehouse accidents occur around the loading bay.  This equates to over 400 serious injuries a year, including an average of eight fatalities.

Jason was quick to dismiss the effectiveness of many of the common methods of loading bay control: “Traffic lights, like road driving, can be ‘jumped’ by drivers, and European drivers may look at the set of lights on the other side of the bay.  Hanging vehicle keys, meanwhile, doesn’t always mean you get the truck’s actual keys, or that the driver doesn’t have a spare set.”  He also pointed out that wheel chocks can be driven over, and that a yard banksman is becoming an increasingly rare sight.

“The trouble with all the alternatives,” Jason added, “is that they require a high degree of supervision, and if that supervision fails, discipline and retraining can be costly.”

Salvo, by contrast, is failsafe, since it removes the risk of human error.  Salvo consists of a mechanical key-holding cylindrical lock, which attaches to the articulated trailer’s emergency airline coupling, 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.

The recent HSE booklet ‘Warehousing and storage: A guide to health and safety’ recommends interlocks as a safe system of work to combat driveaways.  Salvo was a finalist in the FLTA’s Awards for Excellence 2005.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.