Silly,
You're right, the whole point of crash testing is to make window cleaning safer. When we first released news of the crash testing we invited other responsible manufacturers to follow suit. We agreed with Bryan Dolby to make a presentation at the NFMWGC headquarters, all pole suppliers were invited. That was in April 2003, to date no such meeting has taken place, because certain competitors declined to attend.
Every year 3-5 window cleaners are killed in ladder accidents, in separate incidents. The potential exists for 3 window cleaners to be killed in a single road traffic accident by the water tank fitted in their van, a fact that has been proven. Clearly the use of waterfed pole systems is set to grow, it is not difficult therefore to foresee a time when two or more incidents involving water tanks lead to greater loss of life than ladders currently do. Remember that waterfed poles are meant to be safer than ladders.
We really would like to see other suppliers offering certificated crash tested equipment in order to ensure that the waterfed pole industry maintains a 100% safety record.
The argument about whether the testing was flawed can easily be won by Ionic, but what is really at issue here is, why our competitors are so reluctant to submit their own equipment for testing. If the shoe had been on the other foot Ionic would have carried out testing by now and held a certificate in order to prove the safety of its equipment. If these companies are indeed selling more systems than Ionic as Dom suggests then its not that they can't afford it. So it would be reasonable to assume that reasons for not testing may be;
1) They place profit above safety.
2) They do not believe that their equipment would pass.
We have not and shall not name the competitor who's system was used in the comparative test, and therefore cannot publish all of the data without the written consent of the competitor in question. In the event that such consent is forthcomming we will be happy to provide all of the data directly to a suitably qualified third party.
We think that we have said all that needs to be said on the subject of crash testing and will not bring up the subject on this forum again. However, we will defend ourselves when necessary and will answer posts or topics when advise is sought. This was the case when I offered advise to fit DIY systems into trailers rather than vans.
regards
Reuben
