Global wood-based materials manufacturer protects pedestrians with A-SAFE safety solutions

Company

EGGER Group, founded in 1961 by Fritz Egger Snr. opened its first chipboard plant at St. Johann in Tirol, Austria. Today, the successful family business includes Fritz Snr.’s sons, Fritz Jr. and Michael Egger, who are also part of the Group Management team.

As one of the leading international wood-based materials manufacturers, EGGER now operates 21 plants around the world, with approximately 10,800 employees.

EGGER (UK) Ltd operates two manufacturing plants, one in Hexham, Northumberland, and one in Auchinleck, Ayrshire. There are over 800 EGGER employees in the UK, which includes EGGER Forestry and EGGER Timberpak Ltd. EGGER Timberpak is the recycling arm of the EGGER Group, with one site based in Scotland, and three sites based in England.

The challenge

EGGER Barony, based in Auchinleck, East Ayrshire, Scotland, is a modern chipboard production and wood recycling plant, manufacturing around 400,000m³ of raw chipboard per annum.

With increased operation on-site, comes greater responsibility to continuously review the health & safety of its employees and facilities.

Initially, the plant used line markings, and low-level Armco steel barriers, to define pedestrian and traffic areas. The review highlighted potential hazards at crossing points, and the height of the steel barriers was too low, at around 600-700mm. The low fulcrum point poses a further risk to pedestrians falling over the barrier. In addition, this did not provide enough of a deterrent to oncoming traffic, particularly from heavy machinery. There was also regular damage to the steel barriers, requiring frequent maintenance.

The A-SAFE solution

A-SAFE has a proven, and established, partnership with the EGGER Hexham and was invited to consult and assist with the Barony site safety.

By segregating and defining safe walking routes, and using the right product, pedestrian safety has been improved. A-SAFE recommended, and has installed to date, approximately 500m of 1100mm iFlex™ Pedestrian 3 Rail barrier to the external areas of the chipboard production plant, followed by installation to the internal pedestrian areas.

The pedestrian segregation barriers installed meet all the requirements of the HSE Guidelines for handrail systems. They are fully compliant with British Standards PAS 13:2017, which defines how manufacturers must impact test products, clear pass and fail criteria, and any compliant barrier system must be free from sharp edges and have smooth surface areas to reduce the risk of injury.

Swing gates were used to help protect, manage, and slow down pedestrian flow.

Slider base plates have been selectively installed to afford Site Maintenance access to certain areas within the plant. These enable fast, and efficient, access to the zones as and when needed. A-SAFE barriers could be slid out of position rather than being permanently fixed into the ground, creating easy access and maximising efficiency.

1200mm high iFlex™ Bollards were also installed in key positions to protect structures and vehicle impact damage.

A-SAFE safety barriers are robust, engineered to flex, absorb and deflect the impact force, protecting pedestrians, assets, and structures.

The bright yellow colour, and height, of the pedestrian safety barriers, and bollards, make them highly visible to drivers and function as guidance along traffic routes. Their UV-protected outer layer is corrosion and chemical resistant and self-coloured, removing the need for painting.