Castell USA News - a Halma PR news blog

Motion monitoring, static discharge and access interlocks increase production safety.

Erlanger, Kentucky (March 30, 2007) – Castell Interlocks will be showcasing safety solutions for the industrial processing and bulk solids handling markets at the Powder and Bulk Solids Exposition Southeast, April 24-26, 2007 at the Georgia World Congress Center (Atlanta, GA).  Castell’s BEMF, Earth-Line, and traditional MAI locks, on display at booth 1839, increase safety while reducing production downtimes.

The BEMF motion-monitoring device guarantees that motor-driven equipment such as mixers, hammer mills and pellet mills has completely stopped before access is granted.  The BEMF traps a heavy duty key until it registers that the equipment has reached zero speed.  The key is then released and can be used to gain access to the machine.  Entrance to the equipment is immediate after reaching zero speed, unlike fixed time delay systems which can overcompensate run-down times for lighter loads.

Castell’s Earth-Line prevents the risk of explosion due to static charge when handling flammable solids, powders, liquids or gases.  The electrostatic discharge system monitors resistance to earth, triggering an alarm sequence and automatically shutting down operation when a preset limit is exceeded.  The system ensures that operating personnel follow a predefined safe sequence of actions. 

For safeguarding hinged and sliding doors, Castell’s MAI single key access interlocks provide durable, trapped key protection.  Depending on the number of access points requiring control, the MAI can work in conjunction with key exchange boxes and key switches to form an integrated machine safety solution.

Motion monitoring unit permits safe access without unnecessary downtime.

Erlanger, Kentucky (March 9, 2007) – Safe access to equipment with variable rundown times can be difficult to judge.  The BEMF motion-monitoring device from Castell Interlocks guarantees that motor-driven equipment such as mixers, hammer mills and pellet mills has completely stopped before access is granted.  Safety is increased while downtime is reduced, compared to fixed time delay systems.

While an electric motor is rotating, whether powered or not, an electromotive force is generated. This force is measured by sensors in the BEMF unit. A key, corresponding to a lock on the machine’s guard hatch, will not be released until the sensors register zero speed. The key is then released and can be used to gain access to the machine.  Access is granted as soon as safely possible, unlike fixed time delay systems which can overcompensate run-down times for lighter loads.

The BEMF prevents access to the equipment while it is running. Entrance to the equipment is immediate after reaching zero speed. The equipment cannot be restarted until personnel has safely withdrawn, then closed and locked the guard hatch.

The BEMF unit can be connected to both A.C. and D.C. motors, including soft start motors. It is designed to provide the highest level of safety at all times; like other Castell key interlock systems, it is an approved alternative method to Lockout-Tagout requirements under the ANSI Z244 Standard.