A safety device for bandsaws had been developed for meat and poultry processors to help reduce the risk of serious injury.
BladeStop which is now available in the UK and Ireland from sole distributor Interfood Butchery, works by mechanically stopping the bandsaw blade when the unit senses that a person has come into contact with, or is dangerously near to, the blade.
The blade stops operating within 15 milliseconds, minimising the severity of an incident. This is, potentially, the difference between just a small skin cut and an amputated finger. Numerous accidents have occurred during the past few years, many of which have caused deep wounds that require surgical intervention and some even resulting in amputation.
The system has been designed and manufactured by Australia-based company Scott Automation & Robotics in collaboration with Meat & Livestock Australia. BladeStop is already well established in Australasia, hundreds of systems have been sold worldwide since its launch in 2014.
Now, following the appointment of Interfood, the device is available in the UK and Ireland from Interfood’s Butchery Division.
BladeStop is available in two sensing options, with the Glovecheck system detecting operator gloves moving at high speed in a zone directly upstream from the saw blade. In both options, the blade stops in less than 15 milliseconds.
