Checking Safety During Door Movement
Checking Safety During Door Movement
A loose safety edge may still be attached to the door, and a displaced photocell may still have its indicator light on. Neither appearance confirms that protection works. On an automatic sliding cold room door, safety checks need to follow the installed system’s instructions and cover hazards during both opening and closing.
What Staff Can Check
Trained staff should carry out the operator checks specified for that door, at the prescribed intervals. From a safe position, look for damaged safety edges, displaced sensor housings, loose guards or exposed cables. Report new damage after a trolley strike even if the door continues to operate.
Keep the areas into which the leaves retract clear. Opening movement can bring a leaf towards fixed objects beside the doorway, creating a trapping hazard. Never reach behind a moving panel to retrieve packaging or adjust a guide.
Do not test stopping force with a hand, foot or loaded trolley. Carry out only the functional checks taught for that installation, using the specified method.
What Requires a Technician
A competent technician needs to verify that protective devices produce the intended response through the controller. Depending on the system and direction of travel, that response may involve preventing movement, stopping or reopening.
Where force measurement forms part of the required verification, it needs suitable test equipment and the applicable procedure. Increasing drive force to overcome a sticking door can change its safety performance and should never be an informal operating adjustment.
If a required safety check fails, stop normal use and arrange for the door to be made safe under the site’s procedure. Keep people clear of the hazard while preserving a safe exit for anyone inside the cold room. Do not bypass the device to finish a delivery.
Return the door to normal service only after the fault has been corrected and the relevant checks completed. Tell the affected staff when it is ready for use.
