Produce a cleaner sweep
April 1st 2004

aLook around any factory, street, farm, shopping centre, carpark or high street and it is obvious that dust, dirt and debris are making an impact on our lives, says Charles Browning of Broadwood International.

He says There are numerous ways of sweeping up using both mechanical and manual methods, such as brooms, mechanical sweepers and modular broom attachments. However, which ever one is chosen, the problems of creating airborne pollutants from dust particles must be considered.

Not only can dust be a health hazard causing respiratory diseases, irritation to eyes, ears, nose, throat and skin, but can it can damage equipment, impair visibility, cause unpleasant odours and problems with community relations.

Manual sweeping minimises the amount of dust put into the atmosphere, but is labour intensive and slow. It can also lead to RSI.

Sit- and walk-behind sweepers are easy to operate and cover a surface quickly and effectively. However, says Browning, they are costly to buy and can cause substantial amounts of dust if they are not equipped with a dust extractor system.

Modular broom attachments provide efficient sweeping without the use of expensive manual labour or the cost of mechanical sweepers.

These attachments are easily fitted to equipment such as skid-steers, forklifts, loader buckets, 3-point hitches or pick-up trucks using a heavy duty mount. Products such as the SweepEx range have no moving parts, which means maintenance and downtime are practically non-existent and most importantly they generate minimal dust.

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