The manufacturer of the BladeStop bandsaw has announced the 1,500th installation, with businesses across 30 countries now employing the award-winning technology to prevent serious injury to operators.
Available in the UK and Ireland through Interfood Technology, BladeStop is an innovative system specifically designed to address the health and safety issues relating to bandsaws. The system was developed by Scott, the automation and robotics solutions provider, in collaboration with AMPC and Meat & Livestock Australia. BladeStop 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 BladeStop offers the fastest stopping time on the market, minimising the severity of an incident – potentially the difference between just a small skin cut and an amputated finger.
Richard Nethercot, Group Divisional Manager, Low Risk, Butchery Division, at Interfood said – “This is a significant milestone and illustrates just how far BladeStop has come since it was introduced onto the market in 2014. The benefits are now widely known due to the volume of successful installations across the globe. With the ever-increasing focus on operator safety and the realisation of what a vital contribution BladeStop can make in this regard, it is now widely recognised as a go-to solution for bandsaw applications.”
The issue of labour shortages which continue to plague the food industry has proved another driver in the take-up of BladeStop. With higher turnover of staff and less skilled operatives, the need to ensure safe working practices has been brought into sharp focus. Given the potential severity of injuries from blades rotating at high speeds, many abattoirs understandably switched from manual operations to automated equipment. With BladeStop, they now have the option to return to manual cutting and the benefits this offers in terms of improved yield and accuracy.
Nethercot continues – “We realised its potential when we first saw BladeStop in operation and appreciated just what a game-changer it was. Meat cutting and deboning is widely recognised as potentially one of the most dangerous practices in a food processing operation so having a system that has been specifically developed to address the risks is a key contributor in safeguarding workers.”
