Upright Posture Shearing Platform
Shearing is a hard job that can potentially cause major injuries to the shearers and their coaches. The shear-ezy, an upright platform designed to clamp the sheep and allow the shearer to shore the sheep upright has been released in Australia and TAFE Western is the only RTO in the country to have one. The upright posture shearing platform (UPSP) consists of a shearing platform with an integrated parallel sheep loader. The sheep walk into the loader via an inclined non back-up ramp and are held until ready to be shorn.
The loader clamps the sheep then tilts toward the platform. The sheep is released from the clamp and the rear legs restrained while the sheep lies on the hinged up wings of the platform.
The shearer is able to mechanically manipulate the sheep to each position through the shearing process, and fleeces fall onto the electrically driven wool conveyor belt, directly under the sheep, and is transferred intact to a knee height tray at the rear of the machine for easy pickup by the wool handler.
Occupational health and safety issues have driven the development of the UPSP as many of the injuries come from the ‘catch and drag' part of the shearing process. The UPSP now overcomes this. It also eliminates the need for the shearer to bend down and reduces the physical effort required for shearing.
It will greatly improve the training process as it allows the coach more time to adjust technique and monitor the student much more closely.
The shearing team at TAFE Western are very excited about using the UPSP. The platform will be showcased at the upcoming TAFE NSW Quality Awards, being held in Bathurst on 4 November 2010.
