Record-breaking awards haul for Vision Techniques

After becoming the first company to win three Chartered Institute of Waste Management awards for innovation, we caught up with Vision Techniques founder Michael Francis Hanson, general manager Jonathan Peach, and national sales manager Steve Hurd to discuss their success.

Congratulations on the awards. That’s three in a row! MFH: It really is an amazing achievement, to win any award demonstrates a level of forward-thinking and ambition that we work hard as a team to achieve in creating new and innovative safety products.

JP: In 2015 we won with TurnAware, a cyclist detection system that uses video combined with data analytics to recognise approaching cyclists.

SH: In 2016 we won again with our BrakeSafe system, which automatically applies the handbrake if a driver forgets to when leaving the vehicle.

MFH: This year it has been Ident, which will shut down the engine and apply the park brake automatically if the driver leaves the cab unattended for a length of time.

SH: 2017 has been a terrifying year with so many terror attacks around the world involving stolen or rented vans and HGVs being driven into dense populated areas. This risk has led to many companies questioning whether they do enough to prevent their fleets from vehicle theft and VT Ident creates the protection they need. How do you continue to innovative year after year? SH: We’re very proud to be a company that listens to what our customers need. In fact, all of these winning systems were developed from customer feedback.

It’s only from having close relationships with councils, suppliers, manufacturers and independent businesses that we are able to understand the needs of the industry and create a solution. Is a fourth consecutive award possible? MFH: Absolutely, we’re not stopping now! JP: 2018 will be the year of StopSafe, our new controlled stopping system that brings a vehicle to a safe and controlled stop if the driver becomes incapacitated. Where do you keep all your awards? JP: It’s become a bit of a problem, they’re beginning to take over our offices! We used to keep them in our meeting room but we’ve run out of space. I think we’ll sort a gallery in our reception area.