Common applications we see

• Floor scanners and light curtains intermittently tripping and stopping production for unknown reasons.
• New access points required to reach difficult-to-access areas of a cell.
• Door switches and safety connections incorrectly positioned, mounted or aligned, causing intermittent faults.
• Imported machinery requiring safety modifications to meet Australian requirements.
• Existing guarding that no longer suits the machine after equipment or processes have been changed.
• New hazards or access requirements identified after a machine has been built or put into production.

What usually leads to guarding changes

• An internal or external safety audit has listed the cell.
• A near miss or incident has prompted a review.
• An insurer or a customer audit has asked for documentation nobody has.
• The machine was modified after commissioning and the risk assessment was never revisited.
• The cell was imported or moved, and was never assessed against Australian standards at all.

What an assessment usually finds

We assess machinery against AS/NZS 4024, and where required, bring in a third-party inspector.

• No documented risk assessment, or a risk assessment that no longer matches the current machine configuration.
• Defeatable interlocks. Gates or safety devices can be bypassed, often to make clearing machine jams or accessing the machine easier. A non-defeatable interlock system may be required as part of the upgrade.
• Guarding not based on the assessed risks. Fencing and interlocks may have been carried over from a previous machine without considering the risks of the current setup.
• Safety performance not established. Safety devices may be installed, but the performance level achieved by the safety circuit has not been established.
• Reach and gap distances that do not hold up when measured. Openings and access points may allow reach into hazardous areas.
• Missing documentation. The machine may have suitable safety measures in place, but without the required documentation, compliance cannot be demonstrated.

What we supply and install

Guarding hardware from Axelent, or custom-designed and fabricated solutions, supplied, installed and commissioned. We also supply and integrate safety devices from SICK, Leuze and Omron, including safety switches, light curtains and other machine safety components.

• Guarding design, supply, installation and commissioning.
• Fixed fencing, access gates and panels, made to suit the cell and equipment.
• Interlocking, light curtains, floor scanners and emergency stops.
• Safety relays and safety PLCs for new systems and replacement of existing controls.
• Safety system design for new cells and upgrades to machinery already in operation.
• Safety control modifications, including timed resets, dual resets and reset arrangements for inspection or check locations within the cell.
• Modifications to existing guarding when machinery is changed, relocated or access requirements have changed.

Guarding designed with an existing cell

Safety requirements can change after a machine is built, modified or put into production. An access point may change, a new hazard may become apparent, or a guarding requirement may have been missed during the original design.

We can work with these changes, designing and modifying guarding and safety systems around the equipment as it stands, whether it is a new build or an existing machine.