EFA-SRT® MS Performance: unique durability meets easy customisation
What is actually important in a machine safety door? Sure, the opening and closing speeds play a role in order to avoid long downtimes and waiting times. But there is another factor that counts, particularly because the doors are predominantly used in an industrial and commercial setting: durability. Because only particularly durable solutions are also reliable, efficient and safe in the long term. EFAFLEX has just such a solution in its range with the EFA-SRT® MS Performance – and an industry record besides.
At first glance, the EFA-SRT® MS Performance is largely not so different to other machine safety doors. Door curtain, door case, control element: everything is in its expected place and in the high production quality you’d expect from the global market leader. But Lukas Meyer, Head of Production Management at EFAFLEX believes that “anyone who takes a closer look will quickly realise that the door is innovative on a number of levels and may redefine one standard or another in the industry.”
Redefining performance
The fact that “Performance” appears in the product name is no accident: the EFA-SRT® MS Performance is all about, well, performance. In concrete figures, that means up to 1 million load cycles per year in operation. “This performance is unique on the market,” Meyer knows, “particularly when you consider that we are talking about a long projected equipment service life of around twelve years here. This sort of performance, durability and reliability makes it possible to drastically reduce outage time and downtime in the long term.”
The other parameters of the moveable separating safety guard are also impressive. The EFA-SRT® MS Performance achieves above-average opening and closing speeds of up to 2.0 m/s – a major advantage for person and material flows and therefore for on-site productivity.
Details with added value
EFAFLEX has never been a manufacturer whose only concern was “just” achieving certain maximum values on paper. Added value for the user plays the most important role in every new innovation, every design idea and every additional function. To some extent, the EFA-SRT® MS Performance takes this approach to the extreme. Because a whole range of details, features and extras can be tailored to customers’ specific needs.
This includes even relatively mundane but still practical elements like the choice of door curtain, which is made from flexible PVC as standard, is transparent and can be provided with warning marks in a variety of colours. Alternatively, the door curtain is also available made from transversely stable material in a range of colour variations with and without window.
Completely adaptable
“When it comes to flexible adaptability and customisation, though, the actual ‘secret weapon’ is the door case,” Meyer explains. These have been specially redesigned and are made from extruded aluminium profiles. “The door cases make it possible to fit a wide range of components – with infinite variability at any desired height. The doors can thus be equipped with sensors or fence connection and a total of up to four limit switches, for example.”
Thanks to the transparent frame cover, the door can also be fitted with LED strips and its functionality thus expanded to include a traffic light function. And the EFA-SRT® MS Performance has another special feature: the drive is not only high performance but also can be turned in 45 degree steps. As a result, the door can also be customised during installation and set-up and precisely tailored to its surroundings.
For a safe environment
The benefits of such a high degree of customisation are clear. On the one hand, the flow of people, vehicles or goods can be improved through tailored adjustment, and overall operational efficiency can thus be improved. On the other hand, employee protection and safety can be ensured with the help of appropriate add-ons.
The EFA-SRT® MS Performance also contributes to this in another way. For instance, the door has a safety light grid and manual emergency operation feature as standard. And because maintenance is an essential factor in long-term reliability and therefore also safety, the door has a hinged front cover and removable cable covers. This makes maintenance significantly easier – even though the EFA-SRT® MS Performance is already remarkably low-maintenance and characterised by the renowned robustness of EFAFLEX products.
Simple self-installation
The EFA-SRT® MS Performance still holds one more real highlight: customers can install the machine safety door themselves comparatively easily. To this end, EFAFLEX delivers a corresponding set-up manual and all of the necessary additional parts along with the door. “Self-installation was a common customer request,” says Meyer, “we have fulfilled it with the EFA-SRT® MS Performance.” The machine safety door is available in a range of variants, both for installation on the wall and as a self-supporting, free-standing version.
The door also stands out with a space-saving and compact design which nevertheless allows for maximum dimensions of 3,500 mm in both height and width. An opening height of 4,000 mm can be achieved with a door case extension spiral. As a result, the door is a reliable solution in a wide range of application scenarios – and is a real high-performer among machine safety doors thanks to its high durability.
