An English specialist in excavator safety solutions has partnered with Trimble to launch a new jobsite safety solution.
Prolec, with sites in Hampshire and Dorset, has developed a new application for the Trimble Earthworks grade control platform: SiteGuard Pro by Prolec.
The new technology is fully integrated with the Trimble Earthworks grade control platform.
“Our groundbreaking safety solution operates discreetly in the background, just like the automatic emergency brake in your car, allowing operators to focus on the task at hand,” said Nigel Shaw, Managing Director of Prolec.
Trimble Earthworks is part of a wider digital construction ecosystem, giving planners, surveyors, designers, safety managers and operators a shared jobsite view that connects design data, real-world conditions and machine activity across the site.
SiteGuard Pro’s digital role is to halt heavy machinery when pre-programmed virtual barriers are at risk of being breached, providing a protective digital net around critical assets on the site.
“With this collaboration, Prolec is providing a height and slew limiter with automatic motion-inhibit capabilities, there is no manual setup,” Shaw said. “These include site-referenced avoidance zones and 3D grade control for excavators in one seamless solution; all operated from the Trimble Earthworks display.
SiteGuard Pro prohibits the machine’s boom, stick, bucket or counterweight from entering restricted areas during typical excavation workflows. The system uses 3D avoidance zones that are defined in the back office as ceilings, walls, floors or surfaces, providing enhanced onsite safety for large machines working in high-risk environments.
“Combining a trusted system from Prolec designed for improving safety with Trimble’s highly reliable machine control technology represents one of the most advanced solutions for excavator operators,” said Scott Crozier, Senior Vice President, Civil Construction at Trimble.
“Restricting machine movement within specified working zones makes it easier for contractors to work more safely and with greater confidence in potentially high-risk situations, including near overhead cables and traffic.
“Any time we can provide technology that helps improve safety, while also improving project performance, we consider it a big win.”
The addition of SiteGuard Pro to the Trimble ecosystem allows users to define avoidance areas using Trimble Business Center software, creating digital safety nets around the critical assets on site.
“When combined with Trimble’s turnkey digital site management solutions, customers are able to easily survey real-world objects and turn them into avoidance zones, making work safer and more productive throughout the project’s lifecycle,” Shaw said.
As well, SiteGuard Pro allows contractors to bid on higher-value contracts in markets where a motion inhibit system is required, like nuclear power stations, projects near high-value infrastructure or near the travelling public.
“One of the huge achievements we have conquered together is that SiteGuard Pro is one of the first third-party applications to run directly within Trimble Earthworks,” Shaw said.
The first SiteGuard Pro orders have been placed in the United Kingdom, and the first customer installations are now complete and are being used on several prominent sites across the UK
