Standards and data on AGV safety are still developing, but some AGV manufacturers are going above and beyond the minimum requirements to ensure accident-free operations.
En los Estados Unidos, las carretillas elevadoras fueron la causa de 70 muertes relacionadas con el trabajo en 2021 y de 7290 lesiones no mortales que requirieron días de baja laboral en 2020.
Most fatalities are caused by being crushed by a forklift, either as it falls, possibly due to an unstable load or driver error, or between the forklift and a hard surface or another forklift.
The number of forklift-related incidents is a concern for companies and comes with a significant price tag and loss of productivity. Indeed, incidents can lead to damaged products, reduced employee productivity, fines, penalties, and increased insurance costs.
However, using automated guided vehicles (AGVs) in forklift applications is proving to offer a much safer alternative and one that has other benefits beyond enhancing safety.
As a relatively new addition to site operations, standards and data on AGV safety are still developing, but some AGV manufacturers are going above and beyond the minimum requirements to help ensure accident-free operations.
Beyond the safety of mobile robots
Before delving deeper into forklift AGV safety, let’s first consider the other benefits these machines offer in many industries, including warehousing, manufacturing, retail, and food & beverage applications.
The primary reason most companies look to invest in AGVs is productivity. AGVs can operate 24/7 and provide a significant uplift in the efficiency of a site’s intralogistics.
They perform routine and tedious tasks, freeing up personnel to carry out more value-added tasks for the business.
Garantir la sécurité des AGV
Regulations (and common sense) require that AGVs include safety sensors and devices to avoid and proactively prevent safety incidents. Safety sensors detect if a person, other vehicles, or an obstacle is in the AGV's path. For forklifts, however, safety measures should go much further.
- A load that is positioned incorrectly may fall, resulting in damaged goods, risks to personnel, and even the possibility of the vehicle tipping over. It makes sense, therefore, to add additional sensors around the forks and lifting area.
- These can provide data about whether the load is positioned correctly, and whether it is safe to proceed with the mission.
- In addition to providing alerts about any problems, data can also be collected and analyzed to understand any underlying issues with the lifting process and identify any corrective actions that will increase operational safety.
Make more use of data
Data from AGVs can provide deeper insights into operations. Alongside alerts and information about potential issues during an operation, collecting and analyzing data from the AGV will help identify where vehicles are slowing or stopping more frequently, reducing overall operational efficiency.
Managers can then identify why these issues are occurring and take action to optimize process steps.
