Pacific Automation Named Finalist for the Innovation in Bulk Handling Award

Published by Pacific Automation on 24th Aug 2026

We're proud to share that Pacific Automation has been named a finalist for the Innovation in Bulk Handling Award at the 2026 Australian Bulk Handling Awards.

The nomination recognises the pull wire switches (Smart Pull) within our Smart Series conveyor safety range. This is a great moment to reflect on why we built this product and why it is quickly becoming the standard for Australian sites.

The Problem With Nuisance Trips

Conveyors across Western Australia's mine sites operate in extreme conditions, often exceeding 45°C during the day before dropping sharply overnight. That kind of temperature swing causes the metal throughout a conveyor safety system to expand and contract, and when it's combined with constant vibration from the belt, it creates ideal conditions for a false trip in the wiring of an emergency stop system.

Some conveyors experience a nuisance trip every other week, while others can have several in a single day. Identifying faults can be challenging when a fault automatically resets once tripped. For a conveyor spanning several kilometres, this manual search can cost a mine significant time and money in lost production.

A Switch Built to Remove the Guesswork

Smart Series pull wire switches were developed by working directly with maintenance teams, safety managers and control system engineers to understand exactly where standard pull wire switches were falling short. Specific terminals were selected to eliminate loose wiring and reduce nuisance trips. Every switch has an enclosure rated IP66/67, with an encapsulated IP67 switch unit inside, keeping dust and moisture out of the components entirely. This level of ingress protection allows maintenance teams to test switches during scheduled downtime without opening every enclosure. Furthermore, its SIL 2 Capability reflects the rigorous reliability safety standards Australian sites now expect from conveyor safety equipment.

Proven on a Live Site

Pacific Automation facilitated Australia’s first Smart Series conveyor safety system installation at a Western Australian mine, replacing unreliable Safety switches and protection devices. Following the upgrade, the site reported improved diagnostics and no nuisance trips, leading to a commitment to standardize on the technology for future safety upgrades. For more details, visit Bulk Handling Review.

Recognising the Team

A nomination like this reflects the work of the whole team behind Smart Series, notably product manager Johan Blignaut, who has played a key role in shaping the pull wire switch design alongside the sites that use it every day. It's a genuine team effort, and one we're proud to see recognised.

We'll be watching the Innovation in Bulk Handling Award announcement with excitement and congratulate all of this year's finalists across the Australian Bulk Handling Awards. Winners will be announced at ONE23 Rooftop in Melbourne on 16 September, alongside this year's Bulk Handling Expo.

If you're dealing with recurring nuisance trips on your conveyor safety systems, get in touch with our team to talk through whether Smart Series is the right fit for your site.