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Available online: The Kentucky ROPS Guide
Farmers and technicians can determine ROPS availability
by tractor make and model
Used in combination with a seatbelt, roll bars – also known as rollover protective structures or ROPS – have been shown to be 98% effective in preventing death and serious injury in the event of a tractor overturn. Nevertheless, more than a third of tractors in use today, and perhaps as many as 50% in Kentucky, still do not have these lifesaving structures. To help farmers locate retrofit ROPS for older tractors and even gray market tractors (i.e., non-U.S. made tractors imported without manufacturer authorization), Dr. Mark Purschwitz and colleagues in the UK College of Agriculture developed The Kentucky ROPS Guide, now available online at http://www.ca.uky.edu/rops.
The Guide is designed for farmers, dealers, and technicians. It enables users to quickly determine what ROPS are available for which tractors, which companies supply retrofit ROPS, and how and where to obtain these ROPS.
“The Kentucky ROPS Guide,” said Dr. Purschwitz, “offers full search capability that enables any tractor owner, equipment dealer or technician to determine the availability, source, and acquisition procedures for retrofit ROPS for any domestic or imported agricultural tractor in the United States for which a retrofit is available. The days of searching through scattered computer records and paperwork are over.”
The Kentucky ROPS Guide
- can be searched simply by selecting a tractor make and model number
- provides timely information about ROPS suppliers, ROPS types, and how to order
- includes makes and models of “gray market” tractors, particularly Japanese compact tractors, frequently being sold in the U.S. market today
Development of The Kentucky ROPS Guide was supported through CDC/NIOSH Cooperative Agreement U50 OH007547-07S1. Dr. Purschwitz is an Extension Professor and agricultural safety and health specialist in the UK College of Agriculture, Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering. In honor of his outstanding work, he has been named the recipient of the 2012 SMV Technologies, Ergonomics, Safety and Health Award of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE).