Genie has entered into a licensing agreement with Lavendon Group plc. for its “electronic secondary guarding solution” also known as the SkySiren®. This system is designed to alert ground personnel when an operator makes contact with the platform control panel. The system interrupts boom movement, sounds an alarm and causes a light to flash. Based on Lavendon’s SkySiren technology, the Genie Operator Protective Alarm (OPA) system can be retrofitted to any Genie® articulating or telescopic boom lift manufactured after 2002. It is now available as an aftermarket option but will soon be offered as a factory-installed option.
The system is designed to be as unobtrusive as possible to operators and features a pressure sensitive horizontal bar that is fitted at around waist height below the boom lift’s control panel. When pressure is placed on the bar, as may be the case if an operator makes contact with an overhead obstacle, the system is activated. The system also features a reset button that can be pressed if the system is inadvertently activated.
Genie will also continue to offer the Operator Protective Structure (OPS). Introduced in 2012, the Genie OPS may be attached to boom lifts with 6’ to 8’ platforms. The tubular steel structure is designed to transfer the kinetic energy into surrounding structures while maintaining a protected area for the operator. It weighs 36 pounds (16 kilograms) and is bolted directly on the boom lift’s platform; no modifications are needed and both systems may be used together.
“Our customers requested an additional option for operator overhead protection and we are responding by offering the Genie Operator Protective Alarm,” said Frank Schneider, Booms Product Manager, Terex Aerial Work Platforms. “By offering the OPA along with the Genie Operator Protective Structure, our customers will be able to configure the machine as appropriate to the jobsite conditions.”
“We are incredibly pleased to reach this agreement and hope the global availability of this secondary guarding technology can aid the working at height experience of many end users worldwide,” said Don Kenny, Chief Executive, Lavendon Group plc.
Since its arrival on the market, the SkySiren system has been recognized with a series of high profile industry awards. These include the IOSH Innovation of the Year (2012), Construction Health and Safety Group Beaumont Safety Trophy (2012), IAPA Contribution to Safe Working at Height (2012) and the US Leadership in Lifting Equipment and Access Platforms Platinum prize.
