Safety is key at crucial telecomms site
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Castell Safety International product story
Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team
Sep 15, 2003
Trapped-key interlocking systems from Castell are being used to ensure that maintenance work at the world's largest satellite earth station carries no risk to personnel.
Trapped-key interlocking systems from Castell are being used to ensure that maintenance work at the world's largest satellite earth station carries no risk to personnel.
Located near the Cornish coast, BT Goonhilly International Communication Centre transmits and receives data globally, in the form of telephony, fax, Internet and video.
The site comprises over 60 operational and developmental antennas, and each is fitted with Castell products either during construction, or as a retrofit, to protect personnel from both mechanical and radio frequency (RF) hazards.
"Safety is of paramount importance and, given the high levels of radio energy that we're dealing with, it's vital that we can depend on a company like Castell", says Jason Hambly, Satcomms and Subsea Engineer at Goonhilly.
"Castell provides us with a system of key hierarchy which allows us to operate our permit-to-work system.
This provides a safe system of work which can be designed around our equipment".
Whenever a technician wants to carry out work on an antenna or associated system, and on completion of a permit-to-work, the operational control area duty engineer switches the antenna to standby, releasing an authority key for that system.
The antenna systems-nominated person then uses this authority key to isolate the drives.
This action in turn releases specific keys for the area to be worked on, and the permit requires that the technician signs for the desired key.
Should access be required for an area which would pose an RF hazard, the relevant key is not released until the transmitters are powered down and the RF key is inserted and trapped in an exchange box.
The RF safety work is completed by a radio systems-nominated person and is also subject to a permit-to-work.
Through this system, both mechanical and RF safety is ensured, and Castell provides BT with the means to operate an auditable safe system of work.
Castell products are also used at Goonhilly on power distribution systems, high voltage equipment and uninterruptible power supplies.
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