ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE COVER STORY
SAFER ACCESS, FASTER REST DESERVE A PLACE IN YOU
Don’t chose between safety and productivity! EUCHNER’s CKS2 safe key system and CTS transponder coded safety switch keep people out of harms way while supporting the running of modern plants
Yet plants now run faster, lines change more often, and short stops for clearance or adjustment are part of daily life. In that setting, the access method matters as much as the interlock itself. It needs to protect people, get the job done, and bring the line back quickly. Two devices from EUCHNER are getting
M
attention because they meet that brief without forcing engineers to choose between safety and productivity. The CKS2 safe key system controls who can enter and when. The CTS transponder coded safety switch provides compact guard locking with a smart way to set its behaviour. Used on their own or together, they make safe access straightforward for operators and maintainers while keeping the control engineer’s job simple.
THE REAL COST OF A SHORT STOP Ask any production manager where time vanishes and you will hear about short interventions. Clear a jam, free a misfed part, swap a simple tool, reset a sensor. Each entry might only take a few minutes, but across a shift the lost output is real. Traditional mechanical schemes can add frustration. Keys get lost or broken and replacements can take weeks. Reset involves key sequences and hand-offs. As processes change, hardware needs to change with them.
CKS2 IN BRIEF: SAFE KEY ACCESS THAT SUITS THE WAY PEOPLE WORK CKS2 is an electronic safe key system. A compact adapter reads a highly coded RFID key and switches its safety outputs only when a valid key is present and the defined conditions are met. It achieves Performance Level e to EN ISO 13849-1 and is intended for personnel protection. In practice it supports three common patterns: • Lockout at the point of entry. A valid key stops the hazardous movement and keeps it stopped until the task is complete.
• Key transfer for entry and controlled manual moves where those are required inside the safeguarded space. • Simple authorisation where a key is needed to enable a defined mode or function.
echanical trapped key systems have kept people safe around machinery for a long time. They are familiar and dependable.
force up to 3,900 N in a small footprint that suits slim doors and tight frames. Protection is to IP67 and IP69K, and the tri-colour LED is visible from three sides to speed fault finding. The notable feature is Flex Function.
Instead of buying different switch variants for different behaviours, the actuator you teach at commissioning sets the behaviour. If the application later changes, you fit the appropriate actuator and retest rather than swapping the whole device. For designers this reduces part numbers and keeps options open. For maintenance it simplifies spares, because one base device covers many needs. Device and process data can be accessed via IO-Link where useful for commissioning or diagnostics. In short, CTS gives you a high integrity,
transponder coded lock with sensible flexibility built in.
CKS2
electronic safe key system
Configuration is by teach-in on the adapter.
There is no complex programming step. If a key is lost, it can be blocked and a new one taught in minutes, which avoids the long wait that comes with special cut mechanical replacements. The adapter is sealed to IP67, has no mechanical wear parts, and provides clear status by RGB LED for quick diagnostics. CKS2 can be used as a stand-alone element with safety outputs, combined with EUCHNER guard locking devices, or used as a submodule within MGB2 door systems. Where simple data access helps with grouping or logging, an IO- Link gateway can read basic key information. The point is not to add electronics for
its own sake. It is to make regular access predictable for operators, traceable for supervisors, and easy to integrate for control engineers, without adding restart delay.
CTS IN BRIEF: GUARD LOCKING WITH FUNCTION SET BY THE ACTUATOR The CTS is a compact transponder coded safety switch with guard locking for personnel protection to EN 14119. It reaches Category 4, PL e to EN ISO 13849-1 and offers a locking
12 DESIGN SOLUTIONS JULY/AUGUST 2025
WHERE THESE DEVICES MAKE THE DIFFERENCE Packaging and process lines. Lines that run at pace suffer from small stoppages that snowball into lost hours. A door equipped with CTS provides robust guard locking and clear indication. A CKS2 adapter at the point of entry handles lockout or key transfer. The operator flow is simple. Present the key, stop, enter, complete the task, exit, restart. Because the sequence is electronic and local, the return to service is quick once the hazard has gone. Intralogistics. Aisles and shuttles are ideal
places to pair MGB2 with a CKS2 submodule. One key per area gives clear accountability. The same key can, by design, enable defined manual
CTS, a compact
transponder coded safety switch
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64
