2 april 2015
Challenging year for market-leading Troax
2015 will see preparations for a stock exchange listing, a 50 MSEK investment and quality assurance in accordance with the upcoming updated ISO 14120.
And as if that wasn't enough, the company has also just launched a completely new website and is planning for its 60th anniversary celebrations later this year. Josephine Granell, Product Manager for Automation and Robotics, smiles in agreement as to the current high tempo. But challenges and opportunities provide stimulation.
- Safety is our business concept, says Josephine.
Troax AB is a leading manufacturer of mesh panels. Product Manager Josephine Granell talks about an exciting 2015 that will see the company's stock exchange listing, a SEK 50 million investment in a new painting facility, work with the updated ISO 14120 and much more.
World-leading in mesh panels
Troax is a world leader in the manufacture of mesh panels for industrial applications, warehouses and storage areas and today has operations on almost all continents. Josephine is responsible for machine guards, which represent about half of all sales.
- Machine guards drive a great deal of our growth internationally. It's about finding solutions for all types of industrial environments, says Josephine.
This year will see the release of an updated version of the ISO 14120 standard. The company's global sales coordinator, Kim Dahl, has been project manager for the revised standard.
- This enables us to remain a step ahead as we know in which direction development is heading, comments Josephine.
"Would your machine guard protect you if something unexpected happened? Mesh panels are not only there to section off; they're also there to protect from both the inside and the outside," says Josephine Granell.
Clearer regulations in new ISO 14120
One of the changes is that the regulations have been clarified as regards the colour of mesh panels. The colour must not distract but rather enable a good view of the machines and robots that are protected.
- We've always used grey as standard. However, many customers want to choose their own colours and when the new painting facility here in Tyngel is completed we'll be able to meet that demand with shorter lead times, Josephine explains.
Another clarification in ISO 14120 is the requirement that tools must be needed to open a machine guard. Work procedures must also be established for who is permitted to open machine guards - and when such opening is permitted.
The new plate - Quality Assured - is Troax' way to show that they've tested the strength of the design.
New requirements for risk assessments
- Perhaps the most challenging change for customers is the requirement for a risk assessment to determine how much impact energy a machine guard must be able to withstand. Troax has a broad offering of mesh panels with different types of posts and brackets that can withstand up to 2000 joules, says Josephine.
Troax' test centre conducts extensive tests that customers can consult in the shape of downloadable reports and newly-produced films on YouTube, where they've also gathered films showing how machine guards are affected in the event of a real-life accident, on the factory floor. According to Josephine, there's one core question that all industry players should contemplate:
- Would your machine guard protect you if something unexpected happened? Troax mesh panels offer maximum personal and machine safety in compliance with the Machinery Directive.
Troax tests its machine guards in both a test lab and real environments. Here we see a robot dropping a 50-kilo steel tube directly onto a mesh panel, which absorbs all the energy from the impact.
Text & photo: Gabriella Mellergårdh, GnosjoRegion.se.
