CRH Group teams up with Linde to curtail collisions

In the past, CRH Group has suffered fatalities as forklifts hit pedestrians, so our companies Ibstock Brick and Forticrete initiated a project to find a technology solution that minimised risks. Ged Smith, Forticrete operations manager, pushed ahead with production trials at their Cebastone location in Leicester and has championed the standardisation of the system within the CRH Group. 

In the initial trial in 2007/8, forklift manufacturer Still took up the challenge.

Its first recommendation was to limit speeds to 5kph maximum to allow the heavy vehicles time to slow down or stop automatically when a person or object was detected when travelling in reverse.

Still worked with a specialist company - LogIT Smart Safety Systems - to equip a trial forklift with rear-facing sensors linked through the vehicle transmission, which would automatically detect objects or people working behind the vehicle and then slow or stop the truck.

Initial trials brought the vehicle to a complete stop but this proved totally impractical, so the decision was made to slow the vehicle automatically to a crawl speed of 1kph when an object or person was detected at 1m or less behind the vehicle. This allowed the driver to approach an obstacle very slowly if required in a tight working area.

This was clearly a compromise but we felt it would significantly reduce the risk of contact in reverse but allow the vehicle to operate in a satisfactory manner. The system also used audible and visible alarms in the cab, which alerted the driver about impending danger.

When new diesel Still vehicles were introduced at Ibstock Brick's Throckley Factory and the Ravenhead Factory, all were fitted with the auto-reverse speed reduction system and restricted to speeds of 5kph reverse and 16kph forward.

The changes have generally been wellaccepted by the drivers and despite the speed restrictions there has been no change to working patterns at the factory.

The vehicles are tested on a daily basis by reversing up to a dummy figure to check the alarms and auto reverse speed reduction system are working.

In 2010 Linde went through similar trials successfully and subsequently won first choice supplier status under the CRH Contract Purchasing Arrangement.

Recently seven new Linde trucks fitted with the reversing technology have been delivered to CRH, three each to the Ibstock Brick South Holmwood and Ashdown factories and one to Forticrete's Thornley facility. All are working well and a further ten were delivered to Forticrete Anstone and Masoncrete in July.

It is now company policy that, wherever possible, all new forklifts will be fitted with the auto reverse speed-reduction system.

Some larger Linde vehicles are currently not able to be fitted with the system because of the transmission and electronic configuration but we are assured that the next generation of this size of vehicle will be compatible with the system.

Operational points of note include the need to keep rear-facing sensors clean or they will fail-safe and revert to crawl mode. They can be power washed as long as the lance is more than 1 metre away.

In addition, side sensors can be used to extend the rear coverage of the sensors though they are not able to eliminate all blind spots. Their primary function is to give extra time and protection to someone stood near the rear steering wheels in the driver's blind spot in the event of the vehicle setting off in reverse.

Education efforts
It has become clear that education of both the drivers and the managers involved before vehicle delivery is absolutely vital to the success of the vehicles.

It is immediately apparent that driver behaviour changes as a result of driving the adapted vehicles and the drivers soon modify their driving techniques to complete their jobs but in an arguably safer mode of driving. Hopefully this will be reflected in less damage, extended truck life and perhaps lower costs.

We do not rely on the technology itself.

One-way systems and pedestrian-vehicle separation are also crucial elements in minimising the risk of collisions. However, we know it is impossible to achieve complete segregation at most of our locations.

Another factor that is often overlooked is the training of pedestrians. An in-house DVD was used to show pedestrians - both office and factory based - how restricted the mobile plant driver's visibility actually is and how many "blind spots" he has around the vehicle. They were amazed! Making pedestrians more visible with high-visibility workwear also proved to be very significant.

An auto-reverse speed reduction system is a vital part of the overall safety strategy for minimising the risks of pedestrians coming into contact with mobile plant. It should not replace the training a driver has to undergo but it provides an important additional safety aid to assist the driver.

Conclusion
Above all we need the co-operation of those developing the technology and those using it to continue to progress with this type of automatic safety protection system. The more trucks that use the technology, the more affordable it will become and hence more readily-available.

We always encounter the negative argument that drivers will come to rely on the technology and maybe that is partially true. Whether or not we accept it, forklift drivers carrying out repetitive reverse motions will never look fully around or make full use of their mirrors on every occasion. We believe that the technology described may prevent a serious accident on the occasions when the driver fails to check behind him.