Meet Pyroban

Despite Covid-19 and Brexit challenges, we have been active in our new product development across our industry groups. Our Blue Ex Spot and Red Ex Line safety lights, EverClear long-life flame arrestor, establishing a distributor in France to support Brexit issues for parts, and certification updates for UKCA have been completed recently to expand our offerings to the market.

In 2022 we have a number of projects to launch covering product and service provision and we are excited to bring the Euro Access MEWP product into the Pyroban Group, expanding our military offerings.

The nature of our business, being the bespoke conversion of OEM equipment, means we continually develop new solutions to ensure that materials handling equipment retains its original functionality whilst being safe for use in potentially explosive atmospheres.

We are also now renting our gas detection system Gascheka Zone 3™ to forklift users to bridge safety gaps that may occur due to extended OEM forklift production lead times.

As lift trucks in particular are going through a significant technology evolution, we anticipate there will always be a need to work on developments to meet new requirements. However, our first priority will always be to offer explosion protection conversions that genuinely enhance safety, without compromise.

Over the last 5 years, we have been undertaking lots of research on finding safe solutions for both Stage V engines in lift trucks and also lithium-ion options. I can confirm that we will not be providing solutions for these power options anytime soon as the technologies are just not there and may never be for ATEX applications.

Whilst we have adopted a different path for Stage V engines and lithium-ion batteries, we are able to offer credible alternative solutions including an LPG option for ATEX applications for the first time ever next year. More details will follow soon.

Over the past year, Pyroban has moved to new premises to streamline operations, reducing energy costs significantly as a result. Alongside that, our Environmental Management System, certified to ISO 14001:2015 standards, helps ensure that our processes including manufacture, production, and design, cut waste and reduce the negative impact on the environment. We will be continuing to work to these high standards in 2022 to continually improve waste reduction, whilst ensuring quality.

We are also supporting our customers with their drive towards electrifying ATEX materials handling operations. We offer conversions for all OEMs for all appropriate Ex applications.

The events of the past couple of years have made many businesses more safety conscious than ever, and more aware that when it comes to explosion risk, it’s not acceptable to cut corners. With this in mind, we expect to see more businesses reviewing and updating their sites and (re)classifying their Zone 1 and Zone 2 operations to help keep their people safe, with fewer Zone 1 areas and more Zone 2 areas classified.

We also expect to see increased demand for Gascheka Zone 3, which is usually for Added Safety near to Zoned areas or for companies seeking a safety solution for specific areas where flammable material is handled, but not in such quantities that would require full ATEX compliant solutions. Furthermore, if hazardous area operations cannot source a new or used ATEX compliant forklift in time (due to long OEM lead times), and when ceasing the operation isn’t an option, under an ATEX 1999/92/EC or DSEAR (in the UK) risk assessment, they may consider that installing the Pyroban Gascheka Zone 3 system on existing standard trucks is an acceptable interim solution. We are seeing this trend and have responded by offering Gascheka Zone 3 on a short-term rental basis.

Used equipment is another area that we expect will still be growing, at least in the short term With longer lead times for new lift trucks, for example, we have seen high demand for conversion of used equipment. With the supply chain under such pressure, many operations simply won’t be able to afford downtime while they wait for a truck.

Electrification is another hot topic, and we already convert electric lift trucks and other equipment for Zone 1 and 2 operations, which is increasing. However, we expect to see growing interest in alternative power sources, and we are excited to already be invited to support investigations on how such equipment could be assessed for ATEX compliance. Our 50-year history in the industry puts us in a strong position to support customers with these new technologies.

Finally, we will be eagerly looking to develop ATEX solutions for automated-guided vehicles as we see the interest in this technology increasing. We have a number of active projects globally on this exciting technology.