Optimizing safety through design
Introduction
Safety is the prime concern for everyone working in or supplying to an airport. Mistakes or accidents can cause catastrophic loss of life and even in less dramatic mishaps, the costs and loss of production associated with collisions and accidents can be astronomical. In winter operations, weather and darkness add to the risk of mistakes and accidents, so focus on safety is even more critical.
Vestergaard Company has many solutions and features focused on safety and will always continue to strive to optimize safety in and around the de-icing environment.
This is done through:
- Thinking about and preparing for optimal safety already in the design phase
- Dealing with minimizing potential residual risk
- Constantly thinking about how we can develop and enhance operation and safety enhancing features
Vestergaard Company strives to ensure optimal safety for you and your staff! At Vestergaard it is a tradition to think safety as an inherent part of the design!
The design of the Vestergaard deicers allow your operators to get the nozzle close to the surface that needs to be deiced, yet both truck and operator are far enough away from the actual aircraft that collisions are avoided. Even with running engines, your operators are able to get close to the surface they need to spray.
Close proximity is essential to keep heat loss to a minimum. With warmer fluid, less fluid is used and less time is needed for the operation – which results in less manpower hours, lower chance of collision with other equipment as well as less time parked in the path of 200,000 horsepower aircraft engines
Cameras
An additional safety option is a camera mounted right next to the nozzle. With the camera it is possible to get a close-up view of surfaces including under the wings, so your operator is assisted in ensuring correct deicing – leaving no contaminated area un-deiced.
It is even possible to have a thermal infra-red camera, which also can assist your operator in identifying areas on wings that are colder than the rest, indicating a possible area for black ice.
When reversing large equipment around expensive aircrafts and ground personnel, risk of accidents are obvious. Vestergaard equipment has built in reverse cameras and ultra-sound warning systems to minimize the risks.