Safe to pass solution from Safety Shield will help vehicles to pass excavators on job sites

Safe to Pass is a new AI driven industry safety innovation formed from a collaboration between L Lynch Plant Hire & Haulage, Safety Shield and Costain Group PLC.

In this exclusive interview, Peter Haddock talked to James Barden of L Lynch Plant Hire, Mark Berg and Conrad Procter of Costain about what it will mean for the industry.

Safe to Pass includes the use of a visible illuminated LED pass sign mounted on the rear of a machine, which indicates if a truck or vehicle is safe to pass. The AI system, using specialist cameras mounted around the machine, uses advanced technology to recognise the shape of a vehicle approaching the rear of the excavator.

This then alerts the operator in the cab that a vehicle wants to pass safely. The operator can then make the machine safe and push a button in the cab to change the rear sign from red to another colour like green or amber letting the vehicle driver know they can approach and pass safely.

Talking about how this will impact projects, Jonathan Guest of Safety Shield said: “Ensuring the safety of operatives and drivers onsite is our number one goal. And with this latest advance, we can now combine a vehicle ‘safe to pass’ with our people focused ‘safe to approach’ Thumbs Up solution by simply adding a visible sign and button into the cab.”

Conrad added: “Following trials of the new safe to pass, we believe we can make the process safer whilst cutting passing times by up to 50%, which will in-turn reduce idle times and carbon emissions.”

Peter concluded: “Having witnessed the solution in action at the Lynch training centre, its simple approach to visible and audible alerts makes safety just part of the everyday working day onsite. "And if you can combine safety with greater productivity, it’s a big win for any project, protecting people, plant and now trucks/vehicles from harm. It certainly gets my Thumbs Up.”