Why do we need Speed Controls?

Our company was one of the original companies who started to develop a ‘Speed Limiter’ in the late 1970s. Heavy Goods Vehicle manufacturers originally used to fit mechanical governors, which restricted the vehicle’s speed proportional to engine revolutions. With the advent of increased weight that a vehicle could carry, larger engines were required so the mechanical governor could no longer be fitted. Vehicle manufacturers contacted companies like ourselves to supply a relevant product. The basic function of a Speed Control system is to limit the maximum speed of the vehicle to a pre-set level whilst the throttle (accelerator) pedal is fully addressed, without a noticeable variation in the speed.

The British Standards Institution (BSI) developed a standard for ‘Speed Limiters’ in 1987, and Gerald Gray served on this committee. This was the basis for the ‘EC’ standard, and many other national standards now in existence worldwide. Many Governments have implemented ‘Speed Limiter’ law for various vehicles to improve safety and the environment by controlling the top speed of vehicles, thus reducing serious accidents and pollution.

The World Health Organisation and The Global Road Safety Partnership in their publication “Speed Management, a Road Safety Manual for Decision-Makers and Practitioners”, recommend that all countries should introduce Speed Limiters as the method of reducing the maximum speeds of vehicles on their roads in the pursuit of improved road safety.

[Ref: Speed Management, A Road Safety Manual for Decision-Makers and Practitioners, 2008, Section 3.5, “The Use of Speed-Limiting Technology & Intelligent Speed Adaptation. pp 81-3. ISBN 978-2-940395-04-0. Available athttp://www.who.int/roadsafety/projects/manuals/speed_manual/speedmanual.pdf]

All of our products have been developed to improve the efficiency and operation of vehicles whilst – at the same time – reducing the operational cost. Safety and saving lives has also been one of our main considerations, and that of the governments worldwide who have implemented Speed Control legislation.