Retrofit safety systems offer a broader foundation for a safe and productive workforce
In keeping with its mission of enhancing industrial safety worldwide, Rite-Hite has now made key elements of its patented Rite-Vu Hazard Recognition System available as retrofit or standalone equipment for any loading dock. Previously, these multi-sensory safety alerts were only available with specific Rite-Hite products.
Specific equipment now available for retrofit includes Approach-Vu, a drive approach visual and audible warning system; Pedestrian-Vu, an interior dock warning system; and Lok-Vu, an external camera that provides employees inside with a real-time view of vehicle restraint/RIG engagement.
“One loading dock accident is too many,” said Chad Dillavou, Rite-Hite Products product manager. “Our goal at Rite-Hite is to make every dock safer and more efficient – regardless of whether it is equipped with a Rite-Hite Dok-Lok, leveler or control system. For facility managers, this means that incremental, strategic, budget-friendly improvements can be made over time to optimize safety and help make their end of the supply chain safer.”
Inside the dock area, Pedestrian-Vu uses motion-sensing technology to trigger a bright blue light that projects onto the dock leveler when it detects motion inside the trailer from material handling equipment and/or a pedestrian. This light can help decrease the OSHA-estimated 80,000 forklift vs. pedestrian accidents that occur each year, as it alerts dock workers and forklift operators near the dock position that a pedestrian or equipment could exit the trailer at any moment. When used in conjunction with Dok-Lok® products, Pedestrian-Vu will also alert any dock worker or forklift that enters an unsecured trailer. The blue light flashes as an audible alarm alerts the unsuspecting dock worker to the safety threat, while the exterior light system simultaneously changes to red, warning the truck driver of activity inside the trailer and that they should not pull away.
Outside on the drive approach, from a fixed location above the exterior dock door, the Approach-Vu (pictured, middle left) sensor detects the motion of a tractor-trailer backing into a dock position. A visual and audible alarm located on the outside of the building, below the leveler, alerts dock workers and pedestrians in the drive approach of the impending hazard. In fact, OSHA recently identified semi-tractor trailers as the second leading cause of back-over fatalities in the U.S. This multisensory alert system is particularly important because ambient noise often masks the sound of a truck’s noisy engine, which can be 70 feet or more from the back of the trailer.
Like Approach-Vu and Pedestrian-Vu, Lok-Vu is now a standalone option. Lok-Vu uses an external camera to provide visual verification of trailer presence and lock engagement. Single and dual camera systems are available. The dual camera option allows for interchangeable views between two of three general locations: the RIG of the trailer, the rear wheel base of the trailer, and in the case of spotted trailers, the nose of the trailer to verify trailer stand presence. An interior view of trailer presence and lock verification reduces the risk of back over fatalities and helps maintain supply chain integrity, adding additional levels of safety and efficiency to the loading/unloading process. Lok-Vu is also available as a standalone product, for loading docks without compatible power sources.
