Regardless of how busy our lives get, it’s always important to take a few minutes to find out what trends are currently being hinted in our industries and to discover some of the innovative and beneficial practices that some of our colleagues are already putting into practice.

That’s why today we’d like to discuss the impressive progress currently being made in some of the most important industries in the world regarding the traffic of vehicles within facilities and some of the latest proposals that have been put forward in this regard.

First, let’s talk about some of the companies that are expecting both their workers and visitors to park the vehicles with their “back to the curb”.

Why?

Because in case of emergency the vehicle is ready to leave quickly, and no manoeuvre is necessary.

We can also mention another recommended practice applied by companies with vehicle circulation routes within their industrial or manufacturing premises – the installation of a portable warning light on the vehicles that enter the facilities so that these can easily warn both pedestrians and forklift operators circulating around the place.

At the same time, we are seeing with increased frequency how some large companies are placing speed cameras and video cameras inside their own facilities. This is being developed precisely with the objective of ensuring that both workers and visitors in their facilities respect the speed and the driving guidelines that are indicated.

Similarly, some industries are currently providing parking for their workers and/or visitors outside their industrial premises – just before entering the site- and then transporting people in specially prepared company vehicles with trained drivers. In addition, those who visit the place for the first time are obliged to undergo – if necessary – a minimum training on the precautions to be taken when circulation around the facility.

Claitec has developed a range of products that complement these tendencies to prevent accidents between vehicles and pedestrians, such as our Pedestrian Warning System (PAS) or the Pedestrian Cross Safety Solution (PCS), among others.

You can find out more about all of them here.

Our daily work in the industry requires us to work seriously and professionally in the field of occupational safety. We must be attentive to all aspects of our work and continually add to our efforts to avoid accidents and provide better conditions to everyone operating in the area.

However, we can and should rely on the latest developments brought about by today’s technological advancements. Thanks to the work of all our specialists we are also able to reduce risks and implement new prevention tools closer to those who coexist each day with the intense operation of industries of the most diverse types.

Claitec has also developed a new product that responds to the requests we have received on more than one occasion from our customers. It’s a system that gets activated when a forklift approaches a door, warning the driver about whether the door is closed or ajar, just in case the operator has not noticed it in a timely manner.

When a forklift approaches a door, either closed or ajar, a light and / or acoustic warning is sent to the driver, having previously installed a bidirectional Tz2 Tag on the door and the PAS solution on the forklift.

Thus, if the door is closed or ajar, the Tz2 Tag sends a signal through the PAS system to the approaching forklift. The PAS system immediately turns on the light beacon and / or the acoustic mode alarm warning the driver and alerting him or her to the situation. And, when the door is fully open, the  Tz2 tag stops sending the signal.

We felt the development of this product was necessary after some customers reported accidents at work caused by workers who had failed to notice some doors ajar or closed. It’s not uncommon for the worker to assume that some transit points had to be cleared, concentrating on the load being transported or paying attention to the dynamics of the environment, and ends up colliding with the industrial doors or gates. We are convinced Claitec’s new development puts an end to this type of accidents.

Thanks to the endless technological developments currently taking place around us we are seeing thousands of new improvements that help us better perform our daily work –  new tools appear, constant advances are made and processes are being simplified and becoming more efficient. And these are only some of the multiple benefits that the implementations of the latest technologies hold for us!

However, we also know that the inclusion of these developments in our processes requires a professional an orderly implementation to achieve the best possible results in a harmonious fashion.

That’s why we’d like to discuss here a topic many industrialists are pondering today:

How do we make driver-less vehicles coexist with forklifts and pedestrians?

First of all, we must bear in mind that the so-called AGV (Automatic Guided Vehicles) are already a reality. These machines are being presented as a very efficient tool of increased use in the industry. There’s no denying that being able to automate the movement of goods inside a Factory by using this driverless system is extremely useful.

That said, it’s important to remember that these systems present new challenges like accidents and risky situations between the driverless vehicles and forklifts or pedestrian. In addition, there are several everyday situations that also will affect the transfer of VFA by the factory or industry.

Experience shows that AGVs often cross paths with pedestrians or forklifts, forcing its anti-collision sensors to stop automatically. To resume driving, the vehicle must recalculate the route and redefine its procedures, wasting time and having its productivity negatively affected.

A possible solution to this problem is already being applied by several of our customers who use the Claitec PAS System to detect forklifts and pedestrians and prevent AGVs from activating their safety functions and coming to a halt. This system detects the movement and alerts pedestrians and forklifts to move away or stop. It can also even produce a slight pause in the AGV to give way without having an excessive impact on its efficiency.

This is usually done by placing the PAS System in the AGV and providing pedestrians and forklifts with tags which activate a security warning if both sides are approaching.

AGVs generally have all kinds of protections, be it cameras or various accident-preventing sensors but complementing them with the PAS system helps tackle the loss of productivity caused by their constant stopping and starting.

Are you keen to find out more about this solution?

Visit this address: claitec.com/en/portfolio/pedestrian-alert-system-pas/