Solar Gates UK are delighted to
announce they have been shortlisted for not 1 but 2 Highways Awards, ‘Highway’s Industry Product Of The Year’ and ‘Site Safety Initiative Award’.
Solar Gates UK are ever committed
to improving safety of the highways, we are constantly innovating with key
partners to make sure safety is consistently improved upon year on year.
Our nomination for ‘Highway’s
Industry Product Of The Year’ is with partners Balfour Beatty and their
maintenance teams, managed by Connect Plus Services. They had a daily problem
that they needed help with. Protection - to the correct standard - of low hanging
high voltage power cables and overhead structures. With every second accounted
for Connect Plus needed to see a radical improvement of the GS6 standard pole
and tape set up, which they saw as deficient in its ability to actually prevent
strikes, as well as a radical improvement in the time taken to deploy such a
set up.
Solar Gates UK developed INSTABOOM Lite and Wireless GS6 to meet the problem head-on. Both products are light
enough for a two-person deployment, without a tail-lift, and can be set up in
minutes. Both units are fully solar powered, the GS6 detector uses a laser
scanner to detect any over-height vehicle and signals an automatic lane closure
using the INSTABOOM Lite barrier, up to 60m in front of the detection. An
audible siren and beacon warn the workforce and instant email alerts are sent
to inform the management team. There have been no incidents with over-height vehicles
in the works since the barriers have been installed.
We gained the nomination for ‘Site
Safety Initiative Award’ with Kier Highways and our development of a brand
new safety exit system for the A585 RDP team at Windy Harbour. Kier Highway’s
had a problem that posed a major safety risk to road users at various works
access points of the 6km project. With low hanging power and telecoms cables
spanning several exits and all access points pulling onto busy trunk roads,
there were risks that site vehicles could leave compounds in an unsafe or
unsecure condition. After cable strikes on another projects, Kier needed to see
a radical improvement of the safety and protection over the standard GS6 arrangement,
which they saw as deficient in its ability to actually prevent strikes.
Within just four weeks, the SOSEC team deployed a twin
solar powered barrier with touch screen panel to control the traffic in and out
of the compound. The exit panel requires the driver exiting the compound to
stop and answer 4 simple questions about his vehicles’ fitness to proceed,
before the barrier will open. The simple action of requiring the driver to leave
his vehicle, creates the time and space for them to ensure a final visual check
of their load before pulling onto the network. An over-height detection laser
confirms at least one of their answers and the remaining onus of safety is
placed into the hands of the driver. There have been no incidents with vehicles
exiting unsafely since the barriers have been installed.
Managing Director of Solar Gates UK, Neil Sampson says ‘I am immensely proud of what we at Solar Gates UK are able to achieve with our partners Balfour Beatty, Connect Plus Services and Kier Highways. At Solar Gates UK we have a united passion for protection and safety of the highways and its very valuable workers and users. I am incredibly proud to be shortlisted for not 1 but 2 prominent Highways awards it means a great deal for us to be stood side by side with some of the biggest organisations in the highways industry and developing new products alongside them.’