 BOLO provides the driver with a field of view in front of the carried load that would otherwise be obscured, from 2.5 metres in front of the load and beyond. |
Australian-designed and -manufactured, the BOLO forklift safety product has won an award in the commercial and industrial category of the Good Design Awards, Australia's longest-standing national design award and promotion program.
The BOLO (Be-on-the-Look-Out) mirror system, invented by Craig Macdougall, MD of AVSS Group, is designed like a wing mirror on a car and intuitive to use, except that it's forward looking.
It allows forklift drivers to see around the load and to sight tynes, significantly reducing damage to goods and equipment and improving safety in materials handling.
Macdougall tells
Forkliftaction.com News that the system takes the guesswork out of tyne placement in relation to the load.
"BOLO affords the driver with a field of view in front of the carried load that would otherwise be obscured, from 2.5 m in front of the load and beyond.
"It requires no screens (which can obscure forward vision and create a distraction) or expensive fitting and maintenance, as in the case of cameras. BOLO sees in real time and real light. It takes five minutes to install, has 24 different settings for individual driver preferences and can be moved from forklift to forklift, if necessary."
In essence, the system uses two mirrors - one flat and one convex - pivoting independently on four programmable clutches.
BOLO will be launched in Australia and New Zealand in August 2014.
Macdougall says the system has been patented worldwide. "Offices/warehouses have been set up in Jacksonville in the USA and Nuremberg in Germany and a distributor for the UK has been identified; however, these international operations will not be operational until early 2015."
He says following limited preliminary promotions ahead of the official launch, interest has been received from throughout the world including Europe, USA, Asia, the Middle East, South America and South Africa.
"We now have stock for trialling and would welcome approaches from fleet owners and operators who want to test the product."