Typically, we think of packaging machine safety in terms of hard wiring, e-stops, guarding, lock out/tag out and regulatory compliance. Those are important considerations, of course, but today’s networked safety technologies can achieve substantial increases in productivity. Instead of shutting down a machine, networked safety puts the machine into a safe operating mode, not unlike collaborative robots.
Networked safety is widely applied by European packaging machine builders, and North American packaging OEMs are discovering the benefits, which include a streamlined control architecture and improved diagnostics, as well as fewer stoppages.