They help to create safe working conditions for employees, clients and patients, while also protecting delicate equipment from unnecessary damage.
Dangers of Electrostatic Discharges
A build up of electrostatic charge can occur when using trolleys and carts, and this can be dangerous in some environments when electrostatic discharge (ESD) occurs.
ESD can cause:
- damage to sensitive and expensive equipment
- painful shocks for operators and patients
- explosions.
These dangers can be avoided by using the right equipment.
Managing Electrostatic Discharge
The danger of ESD in certain environments has driven extensive research into ESD solutions. These currently include:
- conductive flooring
- grounding chains on carts
- grounding wrist straps for operators
- conductive castors
These measures are best used in combination to increase their reliability. Chains and straps are subject to human error so do not completely remove the risk of ESD in sensitive environments. Electro-conductive castors offer excellent protection because they are in constant contact with the ground.
Benefits of Electro-conductive Castors
Electro-conductive castors are designed to provide a low-resistance pathway for static electric charges to continuously disperse. This helps prevent electrostatic charges from building up to dangerous levels in moving carts.
Conductive castors come in a variety of frame and wheel materials, including rubber, plastic, metal and polyurethane. This makes it possible to choose an electro-conductive castor that offers the same benefits as a non-conductive castor, for example:
- Quiet operation
- Non-marking
- Light to heavy load capacity
- Strength and durability
- Aesthetically pleasing design
- Rust and corrosion resistant
- Floor protection
- Improved manoeuvrability
Ideal Environments for Electro-conductive Castors
Electro-conductive castors are beneficial and often necessary in a wide variety of industries. For example:
- Electronics
- Medical
- Automotive
- Chemical
- Pharmaceutical
They are also vital in explosion protection zones, as catastrophic explosions can be caused by a small electrostatic discharge.
Electronics Industry
ESD is not visible to humans until it reaches 3,000 volts. However, sensitive components in the electronics industry, like computer chips, can be damaged or completely destroyed with as little as 10 volts.
Without electro-conductive castors, an employee working on a circuit board will create an electrical charge as they move their cart around the work area. This charge will transfer from the castors to the equipment and then to the employee. When they touch a sensitive component, the resulting electrostatic discharge will likely cause damage or destroy the component.
Electro-conductive castors allow the electrostatic charges to continuously disperse and ensure the employee can work without risk of damaging important components.
Medical Industry
Hospitals contain equipment that is sensitive to ESD and operating rooms can contain explosive vapours. Using electro-conductive castors is necessary to prevent risk of injury to both patients and employees.
Choosing the Right Castor
If you require electro-conductive castors for your application, it is important to choose one that meets your additional requirements. Speak to one of our team today and let us help you make the right choice.
