Proven and safe – van racking from Sortimo

With the further development of our system and product lines, we are particularly meeting the challenges of increasing our customers’ productivity, using space in commercial vehicles and optimizing vehicle equipment for switching to electromobility. True to the motto of our claim “Intelligent Mobility”.

However, one point always has top priority in all (further) developments: Safety!
The security aspect forms the basis of our product portfolio.

There are three key aspects here:
1. Safety-compliant installation of the vehicle equipment
2. Securing ongoing operations while driving
3. Crash safety – our products promise safety even in extreme cases

How do we go about this specifically?

A safety-compliant installation of the vehicle equipment forms the absolute basis for any expansion, because if the installation is incorrect, the best and safest product cannot deliver what it promises. For this reason, we have a comprehensive network of our own branches and certified installation partners, who are trained by us in regular training.

To show you what we mean by a safety-compliant installation, I would be happy to give you a few examples:

For these reasons, we recommend installation by our certified partners, because the safety of our customers is important to us. 

Small incentive: If installed by our branches or certified installation partners, we also grant an extended guarantee of three years.

The screw connections must be checked regularly in order to guarantee you the greatest possible safety, even while the vehicle is in operation. All the requirements for this can be found in the assembly and operating instructions that we enclose when the vehicle is handed over. Of course, you can also have the test carried out by our experienced installation partners at any time.

We strongly recommend checking, especially after emergency braking or unusual loads such as evasive maneuvers.

Load securing – never without!

Basically, it can be said that professional vehicle equipment is already a suitable instrument for securing the goods in transit. Nonetheless, goods transported in the vehicle must always be secured, because the unsecured load can pose a great danger to the occupants even if the brakes are applied hard.

There are of course other special regulations, for example for gas transport or the transport of dangerous goods. This includes e.g. B. also batteries for which a separate storage is to be provided in the vehicle.

We wish everyone that a crash never occurs. In the worst-case scenario, however, Sortimo van racking offers you the best possible protection.

Crash tests are carried out both when developing new products and at regular intervals for existing products. We do this on a voluntary basis, there are no legal obligations.

On the one hand, we consciously conduct our crash tests with different independent providers, on the other hand, so-called demo crash bodies and real vehicles are sometimes used here.

Basically, we check here in accordance with the regulations of ECE-R17 / ECE-R44. The frontal crash is simulated at a speed of 50 km / h.

The decisive factor is the delay, i.e. the severity of the impact. The delay must be in a corridor of 20-28 g in order to meet the criteria. The actual delay is measured by sensors. 

A certain deformation of the shelving systems and their connection components is necessary so that the energy generated by the impact can be dissipated and introduced evenly into the vehicle body. The body panels are getting thinner and thinner, since of course weight savings are the focus here too. Accordingly, the load at the individual fastening points must not become too high, since otherwise the body itself cannot withstand the loads.

The EcoFix fastening irons play an important role in this. These deform during the crash, but must not crack. This flattens the impact of the crash somewhat, as the force is introduced into the body more evenly over several milliseconds.

I would like to make this clear to you using the example of a hammer:

A hammer with a weight of 2 kg left in the hold develops a weight of 392.4 Newtons when accelerated by 20 g, which corresponds to approx. 40 kg with normal acceleration due to gravity.

F = mass * acceleration * gravitational acceleration = 2 kg * 20 g * 9.81 N / kg = 392.4 N

Attention! Load securing elements and lashing straps, which are designed in accordance with the European standard DIN EN 12195-1 for securing during normal driving (emergency braking, evasive maneuvers, etc.), often no longer offer sufficient protection in the event of a crash. For this reason, too, a partition is strongly recommended.

Do you have any questions or discussion points on the subject of load securing and crash tests? Feel free to leave it as a comment under this blog post.