2010 Media ReleasesJump To | |
November 2010 - Towbar Technology Scales New HeightsTechnology taken from the design and construction of towbars was used to safely secure a Mercedes-Benz car to the side of Auckland’s 328-metre high Sky Tower.The task of sticking a car on the side of the country’s tallest building over several weeks for a Christmas promotion for the Sky City casino did not faze towbar manufacturer Best Bars Limited, which created the cradle to hold the vehicle.After all, the company had done it before, when another promotion ten years ago saw a 4WD vehicle appear to climb the Sky Tower. According to Best Bars CEO Stephen de Kriek, the secret is down to how his company makes everyday towbars. “The same engineering processes and technology employed in the manufacture of towbars applies in creating a frame to hold the weight of a vehicle,” he says. “In fact, we used a towbar as a starting point to create the rear part of the frame and then worked forward, using the same steel tube and welding techniques.” The main difference was in designing the frame which pick-up points to secure to the rest of the vehicle’s chassis....and the timeframe in which the project was completed. Normally it takes several months from original design to production phase when a new towbar is created, but for the Sky Tower cradle, Best Bars took just three weeks. That tight timeframe included sending riggers up the side of the tower to devise a jig to precisely fit the four stainless steel bolts fixed into the structure of the tower – enabling Best Bars to make the final frame within a tight 3mm tolerance. During the manufacturing process it went through the same quality checks, corrosion proofing and then final load tests that towbars are subjected to. So when the time came for the Mercedes-Benz to be craned into position, the Best Bars team was in no doubt it would hold the weight and stand up to all weather and high winds. The cradle is designed with a safety factor of five times the overall weight, including the car. One of the challenges was to be able to fix a frame to the Sky Tower exterior wall without causing any damage and Best Bars came up with special nylon feet that act as a cushion. “The reason Best Bars was chosen was that we have proven reputation and the engineering skills to deliver, along with our ISO 9001 technical and ISO14001 environmental standards,” adds Mr de Kriek. “It was certainly a challenging task, but very rewarding when you see it all come together and the car is bolted to the Sky Tower first time with no hassles. It was all very exciting and we are thankful to Sky City and the project team for allowing us to be part of it.” Watch how the car got up the Sky Tower in this YouTube Video Clip There are a number of Photos on the Sky City Facebook Page It was also covered by the TVNZ Breakfast Program << BACK TO TOP >> |
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Apr 2010 - Towbar Test Failure Prompts New Call For Safety RuleThousands of New Zealand motorists could be driving cars or light commercial vehicles fitted with “deadly” towbars just waiting to fail and cause an accident and possibly death.The claim was made after a 2000kg rated towbar that was supposedly manufactured to a New Zealand Standard failed in just 41 seconds at only 800kg towing load. Again it has prompted call from a leading automotive industry body to have the Government get tough on dangerous substandard towbar manufacturers and introduce new rules making towing much safer to protect all road users. Stephen de Kriek, CEO of Best Bars Limited, says it is time the Government recognised the potential threat of poorly made or wrongly fitted towbars. “Our research shows evidence of as many as 1500 substandard towbars are being fitted to New Zealand vehicles each year,” says Mr de Kriek. “The possibility of thousands of motorists towing their heavy boat trailer or caravan on public roads who are totally unaware of the dangers if their towbar gives way is frightening. These are towbars that are purported to be made to NZS 5467 (the New Zealand Standard waiting to be enacted) but they are made cheaply from thinner metals, poorly designed or fitted incorrectly. “This has been going on for years and the Government needs to act or more lives will be lost and many more people injured and lives lost.” Mr de Kriek was prompted to make the call after his company put two towbars made by another company through the Best Bars test rig at its Auckland factory, which was filmed by an independent party. Best Bars conducted the tests against its own towbars to illustrate the difference in design, materials and manufacturing capability. The rig simulates typical loads and actions on a vehicle-mounted towbar that is hitched to a 2-tonne trailer. Bought off-the-shelf and fitted as per the maker’s instructions the substandard towbar began to bend under the strain within a few seconds and failed completely in less than a minute, reaching no more than 800kg, well under the 2-tonne rating given by its manufacturer. The Best Bars towbar, which was filmed undergoing the identical test, went on to reach 3000kg, or at least 1.5 times the stated rating, which passes the NZS 5467 test protocol. “Imagine if that was a 2-tonne boat and trailer breaking away from a car on the open road at 100km/h and careering into a vehicle heading in the opposite direction,” adds Mr de Kriek. “This isn’t a case of me wanting another manufacturer’s products off the market – I am shocked that these bars failed so easily and am really concerned for myself, my family and other road users. These dangerous, substandard towbars are a ticking timebomb and I believe urgent action is needed to make sure that all new towbars fitted to vehicles in this country meet the minimum standard. The particular towbars tested originate from a company that claims to make towbars to the NZ Standard, clearly this is not the case. To make things worse they have agents around New Zealand selling and fitting potentially dangerous products on their behalf – with serious flaws unknown to the New Zealand public. As an industry leader I see it as my responsibility to raise this issue at the highest level, ensure the general public are aware of latent dangers and to ensure our industry is vetted for the sake of New Zealand road safety.” Mr de Kriek says the real issue is that the NZS 5467 standard was released in 1993 but never enacted by the Government of the day. Since then, politicians and officials have ignored calls for the standard to be made into law, claiming that there isn’t a major problem with towbars and the statistics on accidents caused by towing are inconclusive. “Statistics show that in 2008 there were nine deaths and 39 injuries directly connected to accidents related to towing, I would have thought those figures were justification enough,” adds Mr de Kriek. He has written to the New Zealand Transport Agency, asking them to view the film footage of the tests and kick-start the process of putting NZS 5467 into legislation. Best Bars has also provided the test data and footage to the NZ Automobile Association, insurance companies and motor vehicle manufacturers so that they are aware of discrepancies in towbar quality in the local market. Mr de Kriek adds: “New vehicle distributore are held accountable for their vehicle safety and yet in New Zealand the automotive accessory and aftermarket industry appears to be allowed to get away with anything it likes.” He says that motorists who want to be sure of purchasing a quality towbar guaranteed to perform should talk to a franchised vehicle dealer and request approved accessories. Best Bars has uploaded the towbar test comparison to YouTube so that the public can see how they performed. The video can be found on our Youtube profile << BACK TO TOP >> | |