Safety covered

Saint-Gobain PAM UK says it has developed the Opt-Emax, a range of one-man operable access covers, in response to health and safety concerns over a perceived increase in accidents occurring from drainage operatives lifting heavy access covers. Through an innovative design, each triangular cover section is independently hinged, said to considerably reduce required effort when lifting compared with traditional access covers. Once opened, the hinge blocks at 900, preventing accidental closure. Paul Thompson, m
December 20, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
5475 Saint-Gobain PAM UK says it has developed the Opt-Emax, a range of one-man operable access covers, in response to health and safety concerns over a perceived increase in accidents occurring from drainage operatives lifting heavy access covers.

Through an innovative design, each triangular cover section is independently hinged, said to considerably reduce required effort when lifting compared with traditional access covers. Once opened, the hinge blocks at 900, preventing accidental closure.

Paul Thompson, marketing manager of municipal castings at Saint-Gobain PAM UK, said: “Our high performance Opt-Emax product provides an assured level of safety for those who need to gain access to below ground services for inspection or maintenance purposes. Our ongoing commitment to delivering assured levels of safety has led to the development of a product that is able to cope with the day-to-day operations that personnel have to undertake, delivering a solution that has the operator at the heart of its design.”

Thompson said Opt-Emax is kitemarked to EN124 and fully compliant with the additional requirements of HA 104/09, SFA and CESWI.

“The product also includes enhanced security benefits, protecting against theft with an innovative locking system,” added Thompson. “Opt-Emax features a ‘master’ cover section that has to be unlocked before the remaining sections will open sequentially. It has also been developed so the entire unit can be protected with just one optional locking kit, which can be fitted retrospectively should additional security or anti-theft capability be required.

Saint-Gobain PAM UK is adding a further three new products to its current Opt-Emax range. The range includes clear opening options extending from 600x450 to 2250x750, plus GripTop anti-skid options for key sizes.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Bridge formwork solutions complete big bridge picture
    July 2, 2014
    Advanced bridge formwork solutions are allowing contractors to complete vital major highway infrastructure projects covering Norway, Sweden, Estonia and Poland. Guy Woodford reports Building the Labbdalen bridges in Norway is a key feature of the E6 highway improvement programme. Main project contractor HÆHRE tasked RMD Kwikform and Teknikk with supplying a complete formwork and shoring solution that could tackle the challenging Norwegian terrain, whilst preserving the environment. Situated two hours
    Read More
  • Concrete competition
    February 13, 2012
    The concrete paving market has provided stable ground for existing players, though key market developments are in hand. US manufacturers have long dominated the concrete paving sector with well-known firms such as GOMACO, Guntert & Zimmerman, Power Curbers, Power Pavers and Terex all being based in the US, while German firm Wirtgen is Europe's leading contender in this market. However there is some jostling for position in the concrete paving sector, with some of the players looking to enter new segments. T
    Read More
  • Success of hot mix asphalt road recycling
    March 7, 2012
    Russian construction firm Kamdorstroy has carried out a successful demonstration of recycling techniques to over 60 highway officials, academics and contractors from all over the CIS states. The demonstration was carried out in co-operation with the Russian Federal Highway and Tatarstan Highway authorities and involved milling, recycling and overlaying a road with hot mix asphalt. The work was carried out on a 7.5m wide roadway with 3.8m wide lanes (with an overlap) using machinery and techniques new to Rus
    Read More
  • SDS develops SuDS material to tackle highway metals pollution
    November 30, 2018
    SDS says that its engineered treatment media Aqua-Xchange can be used in regulatory-compliant sustainable drainage systems - SuDS. Delivered to site in lightweight 1m³ bags, it can be deployed as stormwater treatment in highways drainage, as well as on other higher risk locations such as retail car parks, freight and logistics hubs. SDS claims that independent tests have shown its Aqua-Xchange removes 99% of dissolved copper and zinc, toxic metals identified by Highways England as priority pollutants
    Read More

Highlighted Content