L Lynch Plant Hire & Haulage combine with Safety Shield for UK's first #Digitalthumbsup visual and audible safety solution, already being fitted to over 300 machines for HS2 (High Speed Two) Ltd. I went to Lynch HQ to talk to Director, Steven Sutch about the Artificial Intelligence led visual breakthrough, inspired by conversations with john marley, Senior Works Superintendent at Skanska Costain STRABAG Joint Venture for HS2. Renowned for promoting 'Thumbs Up' safety across the industry for over a decade, the arrival of the very visual Lynch LED Digital Thumbs Up with accompanying audible message, is set to keep even more people safe onsite. Steve: "We are really pleased to have collaborated with both Jonathan Guest from Safety Shield and John Marley from SCS on this fantastic new concept. "We are moving into a different World now and everything is going towards a digital platform and this is another great step forward. For example on a winter's evening at say 3 pm a thumbs up from an operator could be misinterpreted, but with this system, you have both an audible and visual aid." In practical terms, to acknowledge they have seen a thumbs up from someone wanting to approach, the operator presses a button in the cab that triggers the sign illumination to change from a red no entry to a green 'Thumbs Up'. This can also be accompanied by an audible message from an inbuilt speaker saying "Thumbs Up accepted approach with caution" At the same time as the button is pressed the machine is disabled and made safe with the operator then also using the deadman as an additional part of the machine safety procedure from Lynch. It's a standalone system, which can also be used with the Safety Shield AI collision avoidance technology Steve: "After successful trials, we are now rolling out equipment fitted with the Digital Thumbs Up to machines across the UK, with the first 300 going onto HS2. And we hope this will be a mandated accessory in due course."