The IB IL 24 Safe 1 module in Phoenix Contact's InterBus Inline system provides an emergency cut-out safety relay, safety door guard and post switching device for strips and safety mats.

The IB IL 24 Safe 1 module in Phoenix Contact's InterBus Inline system provides an emergency cut-out safety relay, safety door guard and post switching device for switching strips and safety mats. It considerably reduces conventional cross-wiring of safety functions. The module can be used in applications up to safety category 4 as defined in EN 954-1.

The safety terminal safely switches off the power to subsequent output modules in the InterBus Inline system.

It is suited to one- or two-channel emergency cut-out as well as safety door installations.

There is a complementary safety circuit breaker - IB IL 400 Safe 2 - for use in the system's 400V power circuit.

This switch safely cuts the three-phase current to the Inline motor circuit switch.

In conjunction with the safety relay, this circuit breaker can be used in emergency cut-out applications up to safety category 4 of EN 954-1.

Scientific Technologies has introduced the MCJ4700 Safety Light Curtain, which can be integrated into the design of small machines.

Scientific Technologies has introduced the MCJ4700 Safety Light Curtain. An ultra-compact transmitter and receiver (26mm x 28mm, 1.02in x 1.1in) allow the MCJ4700 to be easily integrated into the design of small machines. Response time as fast as 8msec and resolution as small as 12mm allow the MCJ4700 to be mounted closer to danger points on a machine.

The jointed segment design allows for 'U' shaped guard zones that would otherwise require the use of mirrors, or three conventional safety light curtains for adequate protection.

Solid mechanical joints between the segments means that there are no exposed cables between segments to accidentally snag or cut.

This design also allows for 'L' shaped guard zones that provide horizontal protection to prevent a machine operator from placing their body between the vertical segment and point of hazardous operation.

The MCJ4700 Series are available in standard segmented lengths from 3in to 71in.

Features include MPCE monitoring for control reliability, exact channel select to one or more fixed locations within the sensing field, and floating blanking which allows up to two light curtain beams to be disabled at any location in the sensing field.

Additional features include: two-digit diagnostic display; two solid-state safety outputs; start/restart interlock mode; auxiliary outputs (NPN and PNP); and remote reset.

Low ESD models and a devicenet interface are available.

Adequately safeguarding a compact machine is a challenge for many machine builders and users.

Safety light curtains are often too large to be mounted on the machine.

Additionally, standard safety light curtains are limited to providing a single vertical or horizontal guard zone, which is inadequate for many applications.

The new MCJ4700 Series Safety Light Curtain from STI meets these challenges.

With headquarters in the heart of Silicon Valley, STI was founded nearly 30 years ago and employs more than 350 people.

STI has been selected twice by Forbes and three times by Business Week as one of the 'world's best small companies.' STI's safety products are used to protect workers around machinery, automated equipment and industrial robots.

Their products serve a wide variety of applications and markets, including semiconductor, automotive, electronics manufacturing, packaging and consumer markets.

Brammer says that more should be done to encourage the use of low vibration hand-held power tools.

More should be done to encourage the use of low vibration hand-held power tools, according to Brammer. The industrial maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) product distributor wants to raise awareness of their availability. It wants to champion their use and help manufacturers to raise the profile of their low-vib tools, including sanders, grinders, disc cutters, hammer drills, chipping hammers and needle guns.

The differences between standard and reduced vibration power tools are marked.

For example: standard Bosch GWS20-230 230mm angle grinder: 5.5 m/s squared (principal axis vibration) and new Bosch GWS21-230HV 230mm angle grinder with side and trigger handles vibration damped: less than 2.5 m/s squared (principal axis vibration).

Long-term power tool use can lead to health problems such as hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS), which the Health and Safety Executive says can be 'severely disabling'.

It affects the nerves, blood vessels, muscles and joints in hands, wrists and arms.

Over-exposure to hand-held power tools can also lead to vibration white finger, where the tips of the fingers turn white then red, and are painful on recovery.

Brammer tools and maintenance division manager Ian Lofthouse said: 'This is going to be a hot topic, and with health and safety more important then ever more should be done to get people to start using low-vib power tools.

'One of our key customers, which must have thousands of its employees using hand-held power tools, is now looking at the HAVS issue very closely.

We are in a position to help them tackle it by encouraging the power tool manufacturers to push their low-vib versions.' It is estimated that around five million workers are exposed to HAVS, and the introduction in 2005 of the Control of Vibration at Work 2005 regulations requires employers to reduce the risk of prolonged exposure to vibration.

'That means it's not just something employers might like to do,' Lofthouse said, 'it's a requirement, and we believe we can help our customers fulfil it.'

An emergency stop switch which can be connected to the AS- Interface Safety at Work network has been introduced by IDEC Electronics.

IDEC Electronics has introduced an emergency stop switch which can be connected to the AS- Interface Safety at Work network. This contains the standard safety slave functions that can be monitored by any ASi Safety at Work Master unit. The ASi Estop employs the XA (16mm hole fixing) and XW (22mm hole fixing) types which have improved safety features over conventional emergency stops.

If the contact block is removed from the operator the main NC contact will be forced to open.

Also, on a conventional emergency stop when at the locked position, because of the internal spring pressure it can tend to move to the normal position if subject to excessive force or shock.

With the XA/XW it works the other way, the energy tends towards the safe off position.

If the contacts happen to be welded, the force applied to the button will always directly open the contact.

The ASi Estops can be supplied in black/yellow control boxes which are the AS-Interface cable piercing type or the M12 connector type.

Jackson Safety has launched CE approved ViewMaster polarised safety glasses by Smith and Wesson.

Smith and Wesson brand CE approved ViewMaster polarised safety glasses has been launched by Jackson Safety , the West Midlands, UK subsidiary of US based Jackson Safety Inc, personal and industrial safety equipment manufacturers Famous for its Customer Loyalty, the Smith and Wesson line has achieved this acclaim for the 'comfort factor' of its eyewear. Designs such as the ViewMaster concentrate on maintaining pantoscopic angle and position of tangential wear. Combining these parameters results in a streamlined 'swept line' providing maximum comfort, style and safety.

Together they create a sealed security enclosure about the wearer's face without even feeling it or knowing it is there.

The ViewMaster safety glasses with polarised lenses provide 99.9% UV protection and have been designed specifically for general industrial eye safety usage both indoors and on site.

Employees enjoy protection from reflected glare along with reduced eye strain and enhanced vision.

They are ideal for use by plant and agricultural equipment drivers, offshore and shipping operatives, machinery operators and a wide range of other users who may be affected by reflective glare in their course of their work.

The classic streamlined frame is made from durable GS7 nylon with ergonomically designed temples and pressure pads to enhance comfortable and precise fit.

Finished in a metallic grey finish with the Smith and Wesson brand on the left temple, these spectacles also come with a handsome silk-like microfibre carrying pouch which doubles as cleaning cloth.

These new spectacles meet DIN EN 166 EC Health and Protection Directive on Personal Protective Equipment 89/686/EEC and exceed the American national standards Institute ANSI Z87.1+ high impact standards and requirements.

What is a polarised lens?

When three dimensional light from the sun hits a reflective surface such as water, snow, a wet road or a windscreen it becomes polarised or profusely two dimensional often called reflected glare, i.e.: more intense than surrounding light.

This results in unsafe conditions, and increases eye strain by creating a bursting effect on surrounding colours.

For example, on the surface of water, reflected glare becomes a barrier that keep you from seeing down into or across clear water.

A quality polarised lens eliminates all reflected glare that hits the lens and a portion that hits from other angles, thereby helping to eliminate eyestrain and allowing you to see safely your surroundings in natural state.

This allows those working on water to view above and below the water surface, by eliminating reflection.