WAREHOUSING
DOES YOUR BARRIER LIVE UP TO THE PROMISES?
iFlex Heavy Duty Topple
H
ealth and safety in the workplace is a serious business and the stakes could not be higher if you get it wrong. Safety barriers should protect pedestrians and infrastructure from forklift trucks and other vehicles in warehouses and manufacturing facilities; however, not all barriers are equal. How do you know you’re choosing the right product?
Workplace safety barrier manufacturers can make some pretty bold claims about the performance of their products. So how do you know who to trust? Can you afford to wait until there is a workplace incident to find out if your barriers are fit for purpose?
According to A-SAFE managing director James Smith, one of the first things you should ask any barrier supplier is how their product is tested. Has it been tested to an internationally recognised specification or to the manufacturer’s own standard? Some manufacturers exaggerate the strength of their products by using shallow impact angles or unrealistic scenarios during testing. This matters because shallow impact angles subject a barrier to significantly lower impact forces, “The best way to ensure your safety barriers are fit for purpose is to choose a supplier that tests its products to PAS 13 specifications,” Smith advises. “Those tests should also be independently certified by a respected test authority. For example, A-SAFE products are tested to PAS 13 and certified by TÜV Nord.”
Translated into multiple languages, PAS 13 is global benchmark specifically relating to the testing and installation of workplace safety barriers. It was developed over two years by the British Standards Institution (BSI) in partnership with the Health and Safety Executive, global logistics and manufacturing companies, as well as leading barrier manufacturers including A-SAFE. It specifies the correct method for testing safety barriers and advocates independent third-party approval to ensure that performance meets the levels claimed.
A second important consideration is the material from which a safety barrier is made. Formerly, steel workplace barriers were the only option available. Cheap to install but expensive to maintain, they require replacement after impacts and transfer impact forces to floors, causing damage to substrates. Such repairs are both costly and disruptive to operations. When A-SAFE invented the first industrial-strength polymer barrier in 2001, it was a game-changer. Fast-forward eighteen years and there are now numerous polymer barrier suppliers to choose from.
So how do you decide which is best for you? The polymer material itself is a good place to start. For example, some barriers are manufactured from PVC, a material that carries many hidden costs. Difficult to recycle and highly polluting in both its manufacture and disposal, PVC is the single
30 OCTOBER 2019 | FACTORY&HANDLINGSOLUTIONS
most environmentally damaging type of plastic according to Greenpeace. PVC also releases deadly gasses during heating and combustion, making it particularly hazardous in the event of a workplace fire.
“PVC was never an option for A-SAFE. Furthermore, no off-the-shelf polymer delivered the consistent quality, flexibility, and durability we required, so our in-house polymer scientists developed their own material. It is called Memaplex and it is recyclable, non-toxic and flexible,” says Smith. “All A-SAFE safety barriers are certified self-extinguishing, which means that they cannot sustain a flame. Make sure the barriers you choose do not emit poisonous smoke and will not spread a fire.”
Design is another key factor. Some barrier products are assembled by slotting rails in to posts. It is a simple approach, but one that presents two fundamental problems. The first being that in the event of an impact, as the rail deforms, it can slide free of the post mounting and detach, potentially causing injury. The second problem is, if such damage does occur, repairs can be difficult, “It is worth thinking about how easy it is to fit replacement rails,” says Smith. “Dismantling an entire run of barriers just to replace a single damaged rail is disruptive to your operations and can end up costing you both time and money. An independent coupling system is more effective and also quicker and cheaper to repair.”
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