For many years GHE, the HAPPICH ELLAMP Group, has been one of the world's leading engineers and manufacturers of systems and components for the vehicle industry. One of the most successful products in their range of standard items is certainly their patented emergency hammer for shattering glass panes. It has been safety-tested and approved by Tܖ Rhineland, an independent technical supervision body. GHE's emergency hammers are currently being used all round the world and have repeatedly proved their worth in emergencies.
With their latest emergency hammer generation GHE set themselves a target which was to increase the requirements demanded of such a product range. During this development particular importance was attached to creating a more fashionable product to enhance the modern designs of today's public transport vehicles. The result will be presented to the public at this year's Busworld exhibition in Courtrai.
The first thing that catches the eye is the hammer's attractive appearance with its appealing design. The new emergency hammer is extremely tough and practically maintenance-free. It has a lot of advantages and features to offer:
- The high quality toughened tip insert ensures that glass can be shattered in several areas and layers without getting blunt and ineffective.
- The offset hammer head provides an ideal impact angle.
- The greater hammer mass generates greater impact energy.
- The ergonomically shaped handle prevents the hammer from slipping from your hand.
- The hoop guard prevents injury to the hand while ensuring that the emergency hammer does not slip out of control.
Regrettably, protection against vandalism and theft is playing an ever-increasing role in public transportation. Emergency hammers are frequently stolen as souvenirs or misused to scratch bus or train windows. GHE has implemented plenty of new ideas to increase this level of protection and to help the transport operator reduce his repair and replacement costs significantly: The toughened metal tips, for example, can be supplied with a protective cap made of elastic plastic. There are also models with mechanical anti-theft devices, such as steel wire tethers which coil up automatically, or mechanisms which send a signal to the driver whenever an emergency hammer is removed in an unauthorised manner. While on the topic of anti-theft features, GHE have in the past had great success with their emergency handles equipped with micro-switches. GHE's engineers have taken this one step further and replaced these switches with maintenance-free dry reed contacts. Reed contacts are closed by magnetic fields and opened whenever the magnetic field is removed. If an emergency hammer is removed from its support bracket a signal is immediately sent to the driver. Due to their non-contact actuation reed contacts have extremely long working lives.
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