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When a camera or any other piece of electronic equipment gets hit with something as heavy as a log, the knee-jerk reflex is to start looking for a replacement, right?
Sawmills are harsh environments by definition—these things happen. Understandably, the first priority of a sawmill manager is to protect the team members. (By the way, cameras help a great deal with that too!)
Electronic equipment for sawmills is designed to endure quite a lot: dust, wood splinters, vibration, and more. Still, when you get a message that says: “One of the cameras you installed for me got hit by a log,” your interest is piqued, to say the least.
At Opticom, we’re scientists first and foremost. Even though we perform hundreds of tests on our products before releasing them, we’re always interested in real-life extreme situations. And this one checks every box!
We knew it was going to be an excellent case study for our R&D team. But it also turned out to be a great case study for our marketing team—the best stories come from happy clients!
An Opticom Camera Got Hit by a Log—the Aftermath
A video camera that can withstand log debarker vibration is quite a technical feat—but one that can withstand an actual log hitting it?
This is something that you need to see for yourself:
Briefly put, one of our customers in Mississippi sent us the photo you can see in the video above. The camera got hit by a log and…survived.
It still works flawlessly, and the client only needed to replace the bracket around it. This is what happens when you choose the right type of camera for your sawmill application.
In case you were wondering, this is our CC04 camera, one of the top choices for sawmill operators due to its rugged characteristics and compatibility with our vibration-resistant mount.
Why Choose Rugged Cameras for Sawmills Instead of Off-the-Shelf?
When you invest in the right sawmill video equipment, you can stop replacing sawmill cameras every few months. Choosing rugged cameras specifically designed for sawmills means:
- Fewer surprise expenses (like replacing the cameras often)
- Zero gaps in your safety and security procedures
- Better protection for your employees
- Consistent image quality
If you know you’re going to replace the cameras every few months, why bother investing in top-quality ones? However, the image quality you get from your cameras is reflected in your operations monitoring. Poor image quality can mean you’re getting less value from your monitoring system.
Yes, buying rugged, industrial cameras means that your initial investment will be larger than buying off-the-shelf products. But in a camera that’s specifically designed for a sawmill, everything’s built to last, from the lenses to the brackets and mounts.
The Opticom cameras will work even though temperature changes, high levels of vibration, and sometimes, yes, they work even after they’ve been hit by a log.
Can I Buy Just Any Rugged Camera for My Sawmill?
Well, not exactly. Rugged cameras aren’t all built the same.
More importantly, if you want to make sure that your investment is future-proof, you need to pay extra attention to who you’re buying the camera from. There are different types of cameras built for different types of industrial applications, and we pride ourselves in being a partner, not just a vendor to help you find the right solutions.
To make the best choice out of hundreds of options, you need the advice of people who know for sure what’s going to work where. We’re not talking about approximations and educated guesses.
Opticom has lasted in this business for four decades because we’ve never toyed with our clients’ safety, security, and budgets. If we sell a camera for a sawmill, we know for sure it is going to last there.
You can read more about how Opticom cameras withstood the harshest of environments in our testimonials section. From sawmills to a tunnel boring machine and everything in between, our clients have tested the durability of our cameras in the harshest conditions all over the world.
Want to know more about how we work and how we help our clients choose the best video monitoring systems for their specific applications? Need help with choosing cameras and accessories for a sawmill or for any other industrial application? We’re just a phone call or an email away. Let’s talk!
