Sierra Adds Safety Sensor

Sierra International Machinery Inc., Bakersfield, Calif., has introduced a safety sensor system that can be added to balers to help prevent severe injuries.

The Safetech System is being offered on the Macpresse line of balers sold by Sierra in the U.S., and can also be retrofitted onto existing baler infeed conveyors.

The system consists of a sensor and receiver system. A sensor is affixed to the Safetech Tag Belt, worn by the worker or workers feeding material onto the conveyor. A Detector Loop containing a receiver is mounted above the conveyor. If the worker should fall onto the conveyor, a signal from the Tag Belt will be received by the Detector Loop, automatically shutting down the conveyor and baler.

“Unlike other systems, Safetech protects workers who are unconscious or injured, even if no one else sees what happens,” Sierra literature promoting the Safetech System states.

Machines sold by Sierra in the U.S. also contain the keyed locking system where the main key must be removed after the baler is shut down in order to gain access to the maintenance keys. The system also prevents the baler from being started back up by the operator or maintenance crews until all maintenance keys are returned to a special key box.