A TOP health and safety award has been awarded to eye-safe laser measurement technology specialist, Measurement Devices Ltd (MDL), for technical innovations which have helped to reduce quarrying injuries.

The merit award, from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), has been made to MDL for its Quarryman Pro laser-profiling technology which is contributing to safe blasting worldwide.

Quarryman Pro uses laser scanning to rapidly and precisely determine rockface geometry and, using Quarryman Pro software, can compute blast-hole burdens so users can determine the optimum explosive charges for each hole.

The judge’s award was made following a Designing for Safety Competition at the Hillhead exhibition jointly hosted by The Institute of Quarrying and the Quarry Products Association to recognise innovations which are enhancing safety in the quarrying industry.

Although the exhibition recognised all developments contributing towards safer working, highly commended and merit awards were created to highlight those which had addressed particularly serious health and safety issues.

MDL founder and managing director, Steve Ball, says: “Enabling professionals in the quarrying and mining industries to work far more safely, while improving speed and productivity, has always been at the heart of our innovations and we are delighted and proud that this is recognised by this award.”

The exhibition and Designing for Safety Competition reflected industry determination to maintain the trend towards eliminating injuries and accidents following the signing of the second `Hard Target’ initiative which aims to reduce incidents by a further 50 per cent.

MDL, a global pioneer of rugged eye-safe laser measurement technology widely used in the mining, forestry, marine, construction and automotive sectors, entered the rock-scanning business 21 years ago and has its systems in use in a growing number of applications worldwide.

Quarryman Pro, which combines the features of the earlier, motorised quarryman systems with a more advanced laser scanner, is the latest `fully-featured’ version of the company’s standard rock-profiling system and is used by most major surface mine and quarry operators worldwide.

Privately-owned MDL says that Quarryman Pro is proven for reducing incidents of fly rock, air blast and excessive vibration by accurately determining blast-hole burdens and rock face geometry. It also indirectly reduces noise, vibration , dust and air over pressure.

Quarryman Pro also significantly increases productivity for applications which include stockpile measurement, the 3D mapping of entire mine sites.

Users can operate Quarryman Pro, which has a range capability of up to 700m, like a conventional total station or as a 3D scanner collecting at up to 250 points a second.

The instrument is capable of measuring and recording millions of data points on a compact flash card which is easily inserted. Users can select circular, rectangle, and polygon scan routines and still use the instrument as a conventional, reflectorless `total station’ in point-and-shoot mode.

Measurement Devices Ltd (MDL), which was founded in 1983, has four strategic business units for laser modules, handheld laser systems, laser systems and dynamic systems. The company, which is ISO 9001/2000 certified, has more than 60 resellers worldwide and generates 80 per cent of its sales outside the UK.

10/07/07 05:37pm