Your safety – our priority. Part II

Power tools. Rawlplug knows the threat before it strikes

All Rawlplug-branded power tools feature a number of safety systems, both electronic and mechanical. Have a look at some of them.

• Let’s settle this once and for all: a lithium-ion battery should not be completely discharged. The longer it remains in this condition, the less likely it is to be re-energised. The chemical changes occurring meanwhile in the device make battery cells no longer useful. However, Rawlplug’s batteries are well protected. If the battery level drops to 5–8 per cent during operation, a dedicated safety system cuts off the energy uptake, immobilising the power tool. And even though the tool can then be switched on again, for instance to drill more holes, but the safety system sends out a clear signal by suddenly cutting off power: do not wait to recharge the battery; remove the drill from the wall, and look for a charger as soon as possible.
• But let’s assume that the user ignored the warning, forgot to charge a completely discharged battery (or its cells got damaged otherwise), and did not attach the battery to the charger before starting the next job, which made the charger unable to raise the alarm and inform the user about the fault by lighting up the LED. Since we take every potentially dangerous situation into account at Rawlplug, we have introduced a general safety feature into all our power tools: if the user attaches a defective battery to the power tool, it simply won’t start, which virtually reduces all possible risks to zero.  

The electronic and mechanical safeguards used by Rawlplug obviously vary depending on the type and specific model of power tool. We address the needs of every device in a specific manner, and apply tailor-made systems to each one, so that they can function optimally considering the nature of the work at hand and the capabilities of a given tool.

• A mechanical coupling, such as the one our rotary hammer has, can protect the user against serious arm injury: if the drill encounters an obstacle (e.g. a rebar) during operation, or bends in a very deep hole, the coupling will eject the drive, preventing a potential hazard. The rotary hammer’s housing, on the other hand, has also been designed to protect the user from electrocution when, for example, they drill through a power lead. In such a situation, the device may or may not become damaged, but the user will be fine.
• Our drywall driver, which speeds up drywall work considerably, has been designed to take as much of the strain off the user as possible, so that unnecessary injury can be avoided. Its ergonomic shape does not exhaust the wrists and prevents joint pains. Safety matters are taken care of by the contact coupling, by the operation of which – unlike in standard drivers – pressing the trigger does not start the motor and the spindle at the same time, but only the motor, while the spindle only starts when the device is pressed against the surface (which means that you can set a screw on the spindle without interrupting work). Another safety feature is the collated screw auto-feed mechanism, completely eliminating the need for any contact with the screws and the surface.
• In Rawlplug’s angle grinders, an electronic safety brake is enabled in the event of disc jamming, cutting off the battery power supply after overload has been detected. Another system will not allow the toll to start incidentally after a quick battery change during operation. There is also the mechanical protection, always provided by a guard made of top-quality material.
• What plays an immensely important role in Rawlplug’s circular saws (assuming that the direction of rotation has been set correctly) is the footplate, precisely designed and made of durable material, which interacts securely with the cutting disc. Additionally, the device features a housing that swivels as the disc plunges into the material, never leaving the blade unguarded, and automatically closes as soon as it exits the material. The disc is shielded at all times from the top to exclude even the slightest risk of injury, while the cutting depth adjustment feature (optimally 2–4 mm larger than the thickness of the workpiece being cut) not only allows the best cutting angle to be set, but also protects the tool’s corded version against cutting the cable. Not enough? Further safety features we use in our saws include a push-button release (tailored to right- and left-handed users), preventing the tool from being activated by accidentally pressing the trigger, and an automatic blade stop when the switch is released. The LED light on the device’s footplate increases not only handling comfort, but also safety, as it illuminates the work area in conditions of limited visibility, such as at dusk. The feature that dots the i’s and crosses the t’s is the spindle lock, which proves essential if the disc needs to be replaced.

This is, obviously, only a small part of the safety systems we have designed and implemented in Rawlplug’s products. Moreover, as you are reading this, our specialists are working on further features to come. A lot has happened over Rawlplug’s more than 100 years long history, but one thing has surely remained unaltered: your safety is our priority. We take care of it right from the design stage, so that you can trust us in the same way that your grandparents and great-grandparents trusted us.