ROPS ON?


Ride on machines must have provision for a ROPS bar or cab to be fitted, along with a seat belt. The strange thing is that it is not a legal requirement to fit one.


IT wasn’t too many years ago when grass cutting equipment was, to say the least, unsophisticated. With mechanical transmissions and very little attention paid to operator comfort or safety, they were hard work to use and not very productive. Much has changed and today’s high work rate grass cutting machine is a sophisticated piece of engineering. With hydraulic transmissions and considerable attention to ergonomic design their performance is a far cry from machines built even ten years ago. As well as high output and operator


comfort, much attention has been paid to operator safety. There are still many people in the industry who can recall the old saying; “if you haven’t lost at least part of one of your fingers then you can’t be a true lawnmower man.” That saying was always met with an embarrassed laugh by many and very painful memories by others. There is no doubt that machinery designed to cut grass can be dangerous if not used correctly and, over the years, many people have suffered serious injuries or have even been killed whilst cutting grass. It is not only the injuries themselves; it is the ruined lives that follow in their wake. Fortunately, today we are more


enlightened about safety. Cut out switches are commonplace to ensure that an operator does the right thing at the right time. If he doesn’t then the engine and/or the particular drive will cut out. Hydraulic brakes will immediately stop the machine if the engine stops. Careful attention is paid to making access to the machine for routine maintence and servicing as easy as possible. There are many innovations which have been introduced over the years to make machines safer to operate and to work on. Not all of these have been as a result of the demands of the customer. Many have been introduced as a result of legislation which isn’t always welcome by the customer or the manufacturer. The result, though, has been that the number of accidents has been reduced and that trend continues. It would be wrong to assume that


improvements in safety have been attributable to design alone. Ensuring that an operator has the ability to safely use what is an expensive and potentially lethal machine has to be the top priority of any manager. Once the selection process has taken place the operator needs to be trained. Not too long ago a person who was thought to be ‘operator’ material could walk in off the street, get ten minutes of training and then be put on the job. That is no longer good enough. Much of the improvement in safety we have seen over the years has been as a result of intensive theory and “on the job” training. Training is available from a variety of sources. It is a legal responsibility for a supplier to ensure that a machine is “installed” to an operator and that the correct and safe way to use the machine is taught. Many manufacturers and dealers go far beyond this and carry out much more intensive training. Government bodies are also involved and, for any organisation wishing to train their staff, there is a wide choice of options. Some training is free; some has to be paid for. Even if there is a cost it is a small price to pay to train


“... if you haven’t lost at least part of one of your


fingers then you can’t be a true lawnmower man”


somebody to use a machine safely and economically, but at the same time to get the highest output that it is possible to achieve. It would be easy to think that today’s modern equipment, designed very much with safety in mind, coupled with thorough initial and refresher training, will mean that accidents will continue to decline. That, hopefully, will be the case but there is still more to be done. Managers responsible for maintaining grounds and employing people using grass cutting equipment must be constantly looking for potential problems. Manufacturers and dealers, in fact anybody involved in the industry, has a responsibility to be pro-active regarding safety and not just wait for the next set of legislation to be introduced before taking action. A typical example is ROPS (Roll Over


Protection Safety). For a number of years now legislation has been in place whereby ride on machines must have provision for a ROPS bar or cab to be fitted along with a seat belt to hold the operator in place if there is an accident. The strange thing is that it is not a legal requirement to fit one. So, we have legislation in place designed to minimise injury or, in some cases save lives, but it isn’t enforceable. Of course, most responsible organisations will fit them anyway; they take seriously their obligation to provide for the safety and well being of the people they employ. Not all do though; either because of the cost or because of the mistaken belief that an experienced operator with a well maintained machine will never be in a situation where his machine could roll over.


It doesn’t matter how experienced the


operator is, how much training he has had, how many times he has mown a specific area; a “roll over” situation can occur. Generally speaking a safe operating angle is hard to determine. An operator will often cut a bank which is well within the capabilities of the machine without any difficulties at all. He may be totally confident that mowing the


bank going from side to side as he has always done will not present any problems. However, for a variety of reasons parts of the bank may be very much steeper than he thinks they are. It may be a hole made by an animal or perhaps by children intent on causing damage. It may be caused by heavy rain washing away soil. The reverse could be the case with a small mound of soil lying on the bank. Whatever the case a relatively safe bank can become steeper and more dangerous in an instant. Oblivious to the danger because the area is in question is so small, the operator continues along the bank and one of the driving wheels goes in to the hollow or over the mound and the machine is at such an angle it begins to topple. There is very little the operator can do. If he has a ROPS system with a seat belt the chances are he will walk away. If he doesn’t, unless he is very lucky and is thrown clear, he is trapped under a heavy machine with the obvious consequences.


An accident has happened which was


difficult to avoid. However, because it is accepted that, on rare occasions, a machine can roll over on what is normally seen as a safe bank and a ROPS system fitted, the situation should be nothing like as serious as it could be.


It is gratifying to see that one manufacturer, Hayter, who already have a reputation in the industry second to none in providing training for operators, is prepared to do much more than what they are legally bound to do. They are now fitting ROPS as standard. No new machine built by Hayter will leave their factory without a ROPS. This decision has been taken purely on safety grounds and will certainly contribute to the reducing number of accidents that occur. There will always be more to do, but Hayter are to be applauded for the action they have taken.


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