How to select access equipment is depicted by its versatility, flexibility, and how safe and dependable it is in operation and maintenance based on the application it’s chosen for,” says Souma Ray, Director of HAULOTTE India.

The awareness of the use of access equipment has increased over the past decade, yet we still have a long way to become a matured aerial work platforms market in India. Working at heights is not specific to any particular sector. Whether working in industrial, construction, infrastructure, retail, Power generation or distribution, oil & gas, wind energy, shipbuilding, aviation, retail, Commercial & residential projects, access equipment is essential for working at height safely and productively.

 The access equipment industry is more developed and mature in countries such as America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Japan, and South Korea. Over the past few years, the access equipment industry in China has grown exponentially and today it’s the biggest AWP market in the world. In such matured markets the use of access equipment is made mandatory by law to promulgate safe working at heights. In the USA, Europe, Australia, UK any work that needs to be done over a height of 3 metres, use of conventional equipment like ladders etc. aren’t allowed and access equipment has to be used.

The need for access equipment and aerial work platforms

 AWP in India was introduced in the early 2000s and still after 2 decades, we are categorised as an immature market. This is because the volumes are very low. The combined imports of new and used AWP in 2021 were around 1100 machines, which as per industry standards across the world is abysmally low. Although India has immense potential for growth of the AWP industry, unfortunately, the lack of any legislation in the country that makes it mandatory to use such equipment for safely working at height is still not there. Additionally, we allow unhindered imports of used machines AWPs of any age and condition which further acts as a damper on the growth of the AWP industry. Customer awareness over the years has grown but still the realisation of using younger and better-maintained machines needs to spread across the sectors to ensure safe working.

 Safety and security in access equipment operations

 In India, we see the use of ladders or bamboo scaffolding, which are not considered safe for working at heights. Metal Scaffolding comes next.

 Although it’s inexpensive, it takes time to assemble and disassemble. Furthermore, there are restrictions in height, load capacity, safety, and when moving them from one location to another or from one position to another. Whereas, AWP in comparison it offers much better and more productive solutions to work at heights. They are self-propelled, easy to use, and compliant with the highest safety standards, with multiple variants available for selection based on the nature of the application and job. When it comes to working at height, such machines prove to be the most versatile among other conventional options since access equipment gives the user assurance of safety while operating and working at height because of the wide gamut of safety features available on the machines. Besides, it also increases productivity at work and thus speeds up timely project completion. The versatility of an AWP manufacturer is essential to listen to the voice of their customers and make new innovations in their machines, to make them easier to operate and maintain. For a full-range manufacturer like HAULOTTE, where our core business is completely focused on AWPs, we have a broad scope of innovations and accordingly our design and development teams are completely involved in making our machines more state-ofthe-art, in line with our customer’s needs. 

Technology and innovations

 We at Haulotte are conscious of the changing environment. Hence, we consciously have decided in 2018 to change ourselves into a BLUE COMPANY. It means that any new model we introduce in the future will be on an Electric Architecture. We wanted to take a lead in our industry to reduce our carbon footprint. Because fossil fuel is running out, it is evident that in the years ahead most technologies would be based on Electric.

 We are already seeing rapid progress of EVs in the automobile segment. Similar innovations are also happening in the Construction Equipment segment. We at HAULOTTE are constantly innovating. If a machine has a fault or breakdown, there is significant downtime, and a technician must be called. Hence, we have integrated our new generation of Booms & Scissors with the “Haulotte active screen.” It provides all the machine’s parameters and informs and also performs all diagnostics in case there is a failure. It can also provide precise information about the fault. It will tell you where it happened, and what happened, and suggest the likely solution. This makes it easier for the user at the site to rectify the machine with online help from our Service teams. The best part is unlike the competitors we do not need separate diagnostic tools for different variants of machines. Our HAULOTE DIAG is the single tool for all HAULOTTE machines.

 It can be used on laptops, tablets, and cell phones. Additionally, it communicates with the machine via a Wi-Fi VCI unit to perform the fault diagnostic. Accidents and even fatalities due to entrapment are a major worry in the access equipment industry. To address the same, all manufacturers are taking all possible measures and are innovating to find a suitable anti-entrapment device for their machines. We at HAULOTTE have developed and patented our “HAULOTTE ACTIV SHEILD BAR 2.0” which is an anti-entrapment secondary guarding device. It is a very user-friendly system and our customers admit it’s a simple and effective system and welcomed by the operators. Further, HAULOTTE is the only manufacturer who based on the need of our customers to have suitable lighting around the machine to load and work during the night, developed our awardwinning “ACTIV LIGHTING SYSTEM”. All our new generation Booms are provided with a 10-point LED lighting system at different locations of our machines including the upper and lower control panel for ease of working in the dark.

 Our new-generation diesel Boom lifts also have the “STOP EMISSION SYSTEM” in which a machine, when idling, after 90 seconds the engine will shut off automatically. People can continue working on the machine at that particular height. This helps in conserving fuel. Once the machine is required to be moved, it can be simply started by pressing the Deadman pedal on the platform. Selection of the right machine for the right job is very essential. Accordingly, we developed a digital tool called the “Quick Positioning App” that enables you to choose the machine that will best meet your needs and the application for which it will be used.