Product category:
Machinery/plant guarding and protection
News Release from: Rockwell Automation (Allen-Bradley Guardmaster ) | Subject: Nelsa light curtain system
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 30 April 2002
Light curtain guarding increases
production
Replacing a restrictive fixed guarding system with a more flexible, open access light curtain system is enabling cigarette paper manufacturer, Rizla, to increase its production.
Replacing a restrictive fixed guarding system with a more flexible, open access Nelsa light curtain system from EJA is enabling cigarette paper manufacturer, Rizla, to increase its production, simplify its maintenance procedures and minimise downtime in the event of jam-ups resulting from papers fouling Part of the Imperial Tobacco Group, Rizla is a household name and its products are sold worldwide
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 15 Jul 2008 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
RFID coded safety switch cuts wiring costs
An RFID coded, non-contact safety switch, rated at Category 4/SIL 3, helps reduce machine wiring costs and offers extended diagnostics for easier faultfinding.
SS cable pull switches protect operators
A stainless steel cable pull switch is ideal for internal and external use, providing constant emergency stop access along exposed conveyors and around awkward machinery.
The special nature of its manufacturing operations means that in most cases, Rizla develops its own machines.
At the company's Pontypridd factory in South Wales, for example, there are a number of specialist packaging machines which are used for form fill and sealing applications.
Initially these machines were supplied with fixed guarding systems.
Further reading
Safety vehicle updates plants on systems
Rockwell Automation's new Safety, Sensor and Connectivity Demonstration Vehicle brings working dynamic machine displays right into the heart of manufacturing facilities.
Monitoring safety relay switches multi-circuits
Category 4 monitoring safety relay provides an easily expandable solution to the problem of switching multi-safety circuits at different voltages from one E-stop.
New materials address RSI in guarding systems
Following the recognition of occupational overuse syndrome (OOS), or RSI as it is more widely known, the role of machine guarding to protect operators has been expanded.
However, these proved to be frustrating for the machine operators, as corrections in the event of misfeeds involved the lengthy process of removing the guard.
In addition, maintenance was difficult as the guards had to be removed to allow access to the machines.
The problems experienced by Rizla with fixed guarding are not unusual.
Indeed they occur more frequently in today's highly pressurised environment for manufacturing, where higher levels of safety must be balanced against the demands of competitiveness.
Confirmation of this comes from recent research, which shows that the best choice of protective measures is a device or system that combines maximum levels of safety provision with minimum hindrance to normal machine operation.
If these objectives are not achieved i.e the safety system is difficult to use, then it is more likely to be bypassed, an occurrence that has been shown to be one of the most common pre-conditions for an industrial accident.
In an effort to identify a system which would provide the correct mix of safety, production efficiency and operator convenience, Rizla's Engineering Manager at Pontypridd, Byron Davies, called in safety equipment specialists, EJA, a company which offers one of the widest ranges of machinery safety equipment available with its well known Guardmaster and Nelsa brands.
Working in close partnership, engineers from EJA and Rizla examined the possibilities for replacing the fixed guard systems.
A detailed risk assessment was also undertaken to determine the nature of the hazards posed by the machines.
This provided the indication that a light curtain system could be used to eliminate the hazards identified.
Subsequently, the fixed guarding system on the first of the machines was removed and replaced with a Nelsa multi-beam light curtain system, which allows operators 100% access to the machine while providing point-of-operation guarding.
With this system, full visibility and accessibility to the machine work area is always maintained and any downtime resulting from the product jamming or misfeeding is minimised.
Maintenance is also simpler and quicker as it is no longer necessary to set-up or remove mechanical safety barriers.
The success of the prototype application has led to the progressive adoption of the Nelsa light curtain system across the remaining machines at the Pontypridd plant.
Commenting upon the benefits provided by the new system, Byron Davies said: "We were fully aware from the outset of this project that by finding an answer to the guarding problem we could also improve our production.
The difficulty was finding a balance between the two.
The safety system based upon the Nelsa light curtains achieves that balance.
It enables us to maintain high levels of safety provision while being more flexible and productive in the way we operate our machines".
• Rockwell Automation (Allen-Bradley Guardmaster ): contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Manufacturingtalk email newsletter
• Manufacturingtalk Home Page
Search the Pro-Talk network of sites
