DEKRA Award 2018 Presented
Innovations Resolve Safety Flaws
The winners of the prestigious DEKRA Award 2018 have been announced: SIUT GmbH (“Safety in Transport”), Bornack GmbH & Co. KG (“Safety at Work”) and Planpolitik GbR (“Safety at Home”). The awards for innovations designed to enhance safety were presented yesterday, October 23, at a ceremony at the Areal Böhler in Düsseldorf.
- “Safety on the Road,” “Safety at Work” and “Safety at Home” categories
- Award ceremony at the Areal Böhler in Düsseldorf
- Awards presented for forward-looking ideas, strategies and initiatives
Global expert organization DEKRA has been hosting the DEKRA Awards together with WirtschaftsWoche, Germany’s leading business magazine, for many years, honoring services to safety. Criteria for nominations and the jury’s subsequent decision include the degree of innovation as well as the effectiveness, relevance and acceptance of the solution presented.
“The DEKRA Award draws attention to forward-looking ideas, innovations and initiatives designed to enhance safety in our everyday lives. It inspires and motivates and gives institutions and companies the courage to invest in safety,” said Stefan Kölbl, CEO of DEKRA e.V. and DEKRA SE, during the award ceremony. “The winners of the DEKRA Award 2018 have fulfilled precisely this requirement and proved that, even in this digital age, what are ultimately needed are smart people to develop new safety solutions.”
Read on to find out more about the 2018 DEKRA Safety Champions.
“Safety on the Road” category
“Mind the platform edge!” Berlin-based SIUT GmbH has developed a solution addressing precisely this hazard. An illuminated platform edge made from optical fiber concrete both guides and warns passengers. This ground-based guidance system has a signaling effect to warn people about trains passing through without stopping, controls passenger flows and prevents crowds and falls. It also forms a visual barrier at the platform edge. The system has already proved its worth in a series of trials and at the Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt train station.
“Safety at Work” category
Falls from a low height are among the most common causes of accidents in the workplace. When work is carried out at heights of between one and three meters, standard protection measures such as catching systems usually either do not deploy or are not used at all. The “Bornack Fallbag” developed by Bornack GmbH & Co. KG from Ilsfeld is designed to offer protection against the most serious injuries to the torso, spine, coccyx and back of the head that can occur as a result of falls from low heights. A sensor-controlled airbag integrated in a protective jacket is triggered in the event of a fall and cushions the impact. The jury felt that this solution resolved a significant flaw in occupational safety.
“Safety at Home” category
Cyber security encompasses a range of aspects, including the ability to use social and other media skilfully and safely. To ensure that the youngest members of our society do not fall into a cyber trap and know exactly what to look out for in the future, Berlin-based Planpolitik GbR has developed a media skills game called “Juanit.” In a protected environment, children aged between eight and twelve learn how to use different media. On a social network platform, children learn all about the potential hazards and traps they could face and are given various tips and tricks for their safety and security.
This year’s jury:
- Beat Balzli: Editor-in-Chief of WirtschaftsWoche
- Boris Böhme: Head of Product and System Safety at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy
- Dr. Annette Niederfranke: Director of the International Labor Organization (ILO), Berlin
- Professor Raimund Klinkner: Managing Director of the INSTITUTE FOR MANUFACTURING EXCELLENCE
- Stefan Kölbl: CEO of DEKRA e.V. and DEKRA SE