Industrial safety engineering specialist Euchner (UK) Limited will use its stand (G120) at this year’s Drives & Controls exhibition to showcase its extensive range of guard locking products available for bus connection networking using protocols including EtherCAT, PROFINET and EtherNet/IP.
One machinery safety solution the company is keen to highlight at the show is Euchner’s MGB/MGB2 (Multifunction Gate Box) which, by integrating modules including the CKS key systems, can go from being a simple interlocking/locking device, to a small control terminal.
Commenting, Euchner’s UK&I Country Manager David Dearden says: “The combination of MGB2 and CKS can be used across multiple sectors and for numerous applications to ensure process efficiency, create access rights flexibility, increase personnel and process safety, safeguard product quality and create transparency and traceability.”
The MGB2 is a unique interlocking or guard locking system for the protection of safety doors on machines and systems that, thanks to its modular approach, is more than simply a safety switch or bolt and offers a vast array of safety functionality. By incorporating additional safety modules to the MGB2, machine builders can include numerous functions, including guard locking, escape release, start/stop, emergency stop, etc. Its modular design also means the MGB2 can remove the additional need for a separate operator panel.
By integrating a CKS (Coded-Key-System) key system module, Euchner’s MGB2 can be used for electronic access control and access management as an alternative to standard, easily-manipulated key switch or password-based systems. For more complex access control or traceability, Euchner offers the EKS (Electronic-Key-System) where each Electronic-Key from the EKS transponder-based read/write system can be setup using the Electronic-Key adapter and loaded with information on specific key owners and their rights/privileges. This allows them to control specific machine functions or contain encrypted process parameters for an installation.
The MGB2, CKS and EKS systems are just three examples of the safety devices available from Euchner. For further information on these and other machinery safety solutions, the company’s technical and product support team will be on stand G120 at Drives & Controls 2022 from 5th to 7th April.
Alternatively, please contact Mark Staples on +44 (0)114 256 0123 or mark.staples@euchner.co.uk.
With over 600,000 workers injured in workplace accidents in the UK annually, equivalent to over 2,300 injuries per working day, the cost estimate to the UK in relation to these accidents in 2020 was over £5.6bn!
In a bid to play its part in reversing these statistics, industrial machine safety specialist Euchner (UK) Limited has launched Euchner Academy, a portfolio of machine and operator safety courses that has been designed with its customers in mind.
Commenting, Euchner’s UK Sales & Services Manager Mark Staples says: “By bringing Euchner Academy to the UK and opening our new Safety Technology Centre in Chesterfield, we can continue to help manufacturers and users meet legal safety requirements at every stage of machine and installation life cycles.
“Customers can strengthen their skills, knowledge and understanding of machine safety engineering via Euchner Academy’s comprehensive and interactive machinery safety training courses, which cover aspects including Risk Assessment and Safety Design, PUWER Inspection, UKCA/CE Marking and Safety Control System Design, as well as bespoke courses to suit individual employee and organisational requirements.”
Machine operators attending Euchner Academy approved training courses will strengthen their skills, knowledge and competency of industrial machinery safety. In addition to the theory, there’s a range of Euchner courses that are supported by hands-on, practical sessions that lead to a greater level of understanding compared to other purely academic programmes. As well as gaining the valuable skills required for their role, operators attending Euchner training courses are also helping to promote a safer workplace for everyone.
Standard training courses can be delivered at a customer’s own site or preferred location, or at the all-new Euchner Academy safety technology facility in Chesterfield, with machine safety courses covering subjects including:
PUWER Training
A one-day course covering the content and application of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER). This course covers the regulations and basics of risk identification and assessment. On successful completion of the course delegates will have an understanding of their legal obligations under PUWER and how to practically apply the legislation in the workplace.
UKCA Marking Training
This one-day course covers the UKCA Certification according to the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008, including the CE to UKCA transition. It covers the contents of the regulations and the implementation of harmonised standards. On successful completion, delegates will have an appreciation of the legal framework involved and an understanding of the route to conformity.
CE Marking Training
A one-day course covering the requirements to obtain CE Certification according to the EU Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC, including the relevant documentation when importing/exporting equipment. This programme covers the contents of the directive and the implementation of harmonised standards. Delegates completing the course will gain an appreciation of the legal framework involved and an understanding of the route to conformity.
Machinery Risk Assessment Training
This one-day course provides practical knowledge and experience on how to conduct a machinery risk assessment in accordance with the relevant standards. The course provides advice on how to identify, quantify and document machine related hazards using suitable templates. A structured risk-reduction methodology is introduced using the principles of ALARP resulting in a thorough knowledge of the process and solutions needed to deliver a comprehensive risk-reduction programme in the workplace.
Safety for Control Systems
A practical one-day course providing hands-on experience of safety-related components and circuits. The course is designed to give the delegate an invaluable understanding of the overall functionality and potential shortfalls of any given safety scheme, resulting in a sound appreciation of the key principles to be used when designing or modifying hard-wired safety-related control circuits.
Safety System Design & Verification
This two-day course will give the electrical designer a thorough understanding of the requirements of the safety standard BS EN ISO 13849-1:2015 – Safety of Machinery. Safety-related parts of control systems. General principles for design and BS EN ISO 13849-2:2012. At the end of the course delegates will have the confidence to design, verify and validate a machinery safety-related control system as well as the knowledge to use the SISTEMA software suite to verify and document their design.
Machine Safety for Operational Personnel
Ideal for occupational health and safety professionals as well as other stakeholders within the company, this one-day course is intended to provide the delegate with a basic appreciation of machinery safety legislation including its importance in the workplace. Course attendees are provided with the knowledge to be able to manage machinery safety through the implementation of safe operating procedures and working practices, to complement existing engineering risk reduction procedures in place.
Euchner Academy also offers bespoke safety training courses to suit the individual needs of your organisation, machinery and personnel. The training delivered during tailored safety courses can cover a broad spectrum of topics, be it exploring machinery safety for specific applications or industries or examining standards and regulations.
For 2022, the Euchner Academy machine safety training calendar is available to download from the company’s website. Delegates wanting to book courses can email services@euchner.co.uk, call +44 (0)114 256 0123 or via Eventbrite at https://lnkd.in/dTDKXbuv.
For further information on our machinery safety engineering training courses visit our training pages at www.euchner.co.uk.
With a requirement for new steam boilers with increased capacity, higher efficiency and more eco-friendly emissions when expanding their operations at a second facility in Romania, Universal Alloy Corporation had no hesitation in turning to heat transfer specialist Fulton, the supplier of steam boiler solutions already installed at its facilities in Romania and Vietnam.
Heat transfer specialist Fulton has supplied, assisted with installation and commissioned two gas-fired, horizontal RBC3000 steam boilers for Romania-based Universal Alloy Corporation (UAC), a manufacturer and fabricator of high-strength, hard alloy extrusions for aircraft structures or where precision-engineered products are critical. This is UAC’s second Fulton installation in Romania – at an all-new facility built to cope with increased demand from the airline industry – and third installation across its sites in Europe and Vietnam.
In accordance with strict Romanian regulations on the installation of new plant equipment, including steam boilers, as the OEM Fulton had to be in attendance at the system testing stage, ensuring reliable, maintainable steam could be provided ahead of a planned visit by several prestigious UAC customers. This meant that Fulton’s engineering services supplied support from the UK and, in line with current COVID-19 guidelines, had to self-isolate for two weeks following the test-fire visit.
Under normal operating conditions, the two RBC steam boilers at the new Romanian facility are setup for N+1, with steam being used to heat water in several large vessels via coils, with the water being used for quenching purposes during component processing. Steam is also being passed through coils for a heater-dryer system at the end of the same processing line.
For the steam boilers supplied to UAC, Fulton partnered with renowned burner manufacturer Weishaupt and supplied the RBCs with two low-NOx, fully-modulating burners and reconfigured the boiler steam outlet nozzles to run at just 2 bar. The use of a Siemens high integrity digital burner management sytsem means the boilers are capable of achieving at least 7:1 turndown, something not always achievable from large horizontal firetube boilers.
Additionally, unlike typical gas pressures in the UK of approximately 20 mbar or 60 mbar on the continent, the supply at UAC’s site in Romania was 1.6 bar, so Fulton and Weishaupt provided an over-protection rig for the gas components in the gas train. While the gas supply to the gas train is now regulated to 95 millibar, the over-protection rig ensures that a slam-shut system is enabled should the gas pressure exceeds 180 millibar, completely negating any possible component damage.
In addition to November’s test-firing visit, two of Fulton’s engineers visited Romania in September to service the RBC boiler at UAC’s original facility and commission the two boilers at the new plant. Again, both engineers followed COVID-19 guidelines on self-isolating when returning to the UK.
Both visits also provided an opportunity for the training of key boiler operators at UAC’s new manufacturing facility which, as well as the usual instruction and guidance, also ensured that operators were educated on the start-up procedures in both low fire hold and auto modulation modes for these particular boilers
Offering higher capacities than the 2500 kg/h maximum for its VSRT range of vertical boilers, with outputs to 4787 kg/h and a maximum working pressure of 10.34 bar, Fulton’s RBC range can be specified with matched multi-stage oil, modulating gas or dual-fuel burners as standard, with other burners available on request. The boilers are constructed to BS12953 standard, meet current and anticipated legislation and have been engineered to provide a substantial performance margin.
For further information on Fulton’s horizontal RBC and vertical VSRT steam boilers, call +44 (0)117 972 3322, email sales@fulton.co.uk or visit www.fulton.co.uk.
In this article, Fulton’s aftercare and business development manager Jeff Byrne takes a look at technical boiler house risk assessments, from their legalities to the potential savings that can be achieved.
It is strongly advised that all companies with a steam boiler have a technical risk assessment in place for its boilers and boiler house. It is required by law under the Management of Health & Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and is necessary to comply with the requirements of SAFed document BG01, HSE INDG 436 and HSE INDG 417 Rev1, under which steam or hot water plant should be operated.
Why do you need a Technical Boiler House Risk Assessment?
Besides the legal requirement, a faulty steam boiler brings with it the risk of a steam explosion. With significant stored energy, failure of steam (or pressurised hot water boiler plant) can produce a similar level of destruction and/or devastation as a bomb, potentially causing catastrophic damage, serious injury and possibly multiple fatalities. With around 100 pressure vessel failures and at least one fatality per annum in the UK (HSE RIDDOR 2014), the importance of a technical boiler house risk assessment (TBHRA) cannot be overstated.
So, a TBHRA is therefore essential for owners, operators and managers to ensure that staff are aware of the risks and their responsibilities for the safe operation and management of industrial steam and hot water boiler plant. It is also likely to be the first thing a HSE inspector would ask to see in the event of an inspection.
A TBHRA is also a vital link in the safety chain to identify risk and develop measures to mitigate those risks, thus ensuring the safety of all involved with the plant.
We simply cannot stress the importance of the TBHRA enough, because non-compliance with the law can result in substantial fines and the likelihood of a custodial sentence in the event of serious injury or a fatality.
The Fulton approach to TBHRAs
Fulton’s method with the TBHRA requirement is to take a very collaborative approach with its clients; and use only experienced steam boiler and steam system engineers with over 60 years’ knowledge of not just steam boilers, but steam, water and condensate systems.
This highly-experienced team will scrutinise and photograph every area of risk and will produce a full report proposing and prioritising mitigation measures. This will give owners, operators and managers peace of mind that their plant may be operated safely and that all relevant guidance and legislation is supported once any identified hazards are rectified.
What are the typical findings of a TBHRA?
Unlike a vehicle MOT, a TBHRA does not pass or fail a steam system, but instead highlights hazards and the potential risk and then proposes measures to rectify any issues.
According to INDG 436 “a risk assessment does not need to include excessive detail”, but issues highlighted can include boiler specification, location, operation and condition, poor record keeping, lack of suitable/relevant training or trained operator absence cover, shortage of plant drawings and manuals, control system reliability, ventilation issues, poor/no suitable operational procedures, water quality issues, etc.
Beyond the TBHRA?
Once its assessment is completed and delivered, there is no commitment by the customer to involve Fulton in any post-assessment remedial works. But the document does highlight areas of the steam system that require attention and will prioritise the risk they pose from high priority (red) to lower priority (green). The assessment must also be made available to the boiler operator and, in the event of the sale of equipment, the new owner/operator.
However, unlike a MOT, a TBHRA is a live document that should be updated on an ongoing basis when any changes or modifications affecting the operation of a boiler occurs. This can include personnel changes, additional training, physical changes including boiler/burner upgrades, legislation amendments, etc.
Fulton can offer support to the customer once the TBHRA has been completed, or during or after the annual review. This support can be provided onsite or via telephone or video conference assistance once the review is completed.
A TBHRA also offers excellent value for money because it not only highlights areas of potential risk for owners, operators and managers, but can also identify where enhancements to the steam system could lead to improved energy efficiency. For example, the cost to replace an old, inefficient or dangerous burner could easily be offset within a few years by the fuel savings achieved through the upgrade.
For further information on Fulton’s technical boiler house risk assessment package, call the office on +44 (0)117 972 3322, email aftercare@fulton.co.uk or visit www.fulton.co.uk.
