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Case Study: Hanson – Managing Vehicle and Pedestrian Traffic at a Major Quarry
The challenge: Navigating a high-risk, narrow site
Hanson UK, a leading supplier of building materials, faced a significant safety challenge at its Dagenham site. This location is one of the busiest in the southeast of England, operating 24/7, 365 days a year. The sand and gravel plant alone produces circa 1.5 million tonnes and imports up to one million tonnes of material annually.
The site’s long and narrow layout created complexities in traffic management, and management had observed a troubling increase in incidents between mobile plant and vehicles, mainly lorries. There was an urgent need to reduce the frequency of these near-miss occurrences to ensure the safety of all staff, visitors, and contractors.
The solution: A site-wide pedestrian and access management system
Hanson UK collaborated with their ZoneSafe reseller, MechTech, to address these safety concerns. The solution was not singular but a layered approach: ZoneSafe was initially trialled on the sand and gravel plant, deployed alongside CCTV and a solar-powered pedestrian crossing. This combination proved incredibly effective.
Happy with the results, Hanson implemented the site-wide ZoneSafe solution to manage pedestrian safety and vehicle access throughout the facility. A critical focus area was ensuring safe passage from the operational area to the jetty, enabling shovel loader drivers and mobile plant operators to receive a full 360-degree signal of anything—pedestrian or vehicle—that may or may not be within their working area.
The result: Reduced incidents and an enhanced safety culture
Implementing ZoneSafe has ensured a notable improvement in the safety culture at the Dagenham site. The system provides substantial health and safety benefits for everyone visiting and working there, offering staff peace of mind.
The implementation has delivered clear, tangible returns, particularly in risk elimination:
- Incident Elimination: The system helped eliminate incidents that could have happened over time. Management confirmed that “Prior to installing ZoneSafe, we had an incident that could have led to a £60,000 claim due to damages.”
- Safety Justification: The return on investment is undeniable. As Site Manager Michael Perkins stated, the system’s value is clear: “to us, the cost of the ZoneSafe system—is it worth the money? One hundred per cent.”
Michael Perkins also highlighted the cultural shift: “We are proud to say that our health and safety culture is changing for the better with a strong commitment to training and the drive to promote a safe working mentality.” This culture is supported by a “one team” ethic that involves weekly, monthly, and quarterly meetings across all divisions (aggregates, asphalt, and concrete) to share safety lessons and improvements with other units across the company.
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