Salvo now easier and quicker to install
October 14th 2008 According to the Fork Lift Truck Association, over 400 serious injuries result from fork lift-related accidents every year, including around eight fatalities. It is estimated that 10% of these incidents occur during loading operations, often when articulated lorries prematurely leave their designated loading bay, creating a gap into which the fork lift then falls. Such an accident is known as a ‘driveaway’, and it was to eradicate precisely this kind of event that industrial safety specialist Castell developed its Salvo range four years ago.
Salvo consists of a mechanical key-holding cylindrical lock which attaches to the articulated trailer, and an electro-mechanical lock inside the warehouse, fitted to the loading bay door. Salvo links the trailer to the bay door during the loading of goods and forces drivers to immobilise the trailer prior to the door being opened. If the trailer is not locked in place, loading cannot begin.
“Using Castell’s well-proven safety technology, our designers have managed to develop a product that significantly reduces the risks involved in loading articulated lorries,” says Tim Hughes, Castell’s UK Sales Manager.
“The simplicity and flexibility of the Salvo system ensure that it can be easily incorporated into existing working practices.” Once the trailer has been reversed into position, the Salvo Susie lock is fitted to the exposed air brake line coupling on the trailer bulkhead. Removing the emergency air line applies the air brakes and immobilises the trailer. After successful fitment, a key is released from the Susie, locking the unit firmly onto the coupling.
The key is taken to the corresponding external loading bay exchange unit. Inserting the key into the unit releases a corresponding key inside the warehouse, and this key is then used to open the bay door. While the door is open, the key remains trapped and consequently the trailer cannot move.
Salvo is available in two versions, one for UK Susie, and the other for European and US Glad Hand, brake couplings, making it universal to all articulated lorries.
Advantages
The main advantage of the system is its simplicity: installation is quick and easy, and causes minimum disruption to operations. Each bay is uniquely coded and Castell keeps a register of all codes issued, ensuring site integrity.
Salvo also has benefits over alternative safety systems currently in use, such as traffic lights and vehicle restraints. The former rely on drivers’ ability to correctly adhere to operating principles; if drivers are determined to exit the bay, traffic lights are powerless to stop them. Conversely, while vehicle restraint systems do prevent driveaways, they are also significantly more expensive, require considerable installation time and, in the event of mechanical failure, lead to extensive upheaval.
Salvo Relaunch
Castell has recently revamped the whole Salvo range to facilitate the lives of third-party installers and distributors. A comprehensive user guide is now available, providing all the information required for sales, distribution, installation and maintenance. Thanks to a manufacturing shift to product end-coding, lead times have been reduced from six weeks to just one. New products have also been added to the range, including Salvo Club – which secures rigid vehicles by locking the steering wheel in place – and Salvo Bollard, a modular barrier system compatible with many kinds of access lock. The latter can be interlocked with a component other then the door, allowing doors to be safely left open during the hot summer months.
Perhaps most significantly, a new plug-andplay control panel has been introduced. The PCB-based, software-programmable device is multi-voltage and able to power external lights and beacons, greatly simplifying and speeding up the installation process. | 
