When you’re working in extreme conditions, it is necessary to take care of yourself and the people you’re working with. This responsibility is shared by businesses also. They must ensure that employees are not subjected to unnecessary risk.
A serious injury may occur for many different reasons. It could be related to the work itself, the environment, or even the location. These risks are prevalent in fields like:
- Construction,
- Manufacturing,
- Oil and gas, and
- The petrochemical industry to name a few.
While risks are high in the industries mentioned, they are not restricted to these fields. Employees in the manufacturing field and even the transport industry are at risk if care is not taken.
What is a High-Risk Environment?
A place with a potential risk of hazards that could impact employee safety is considered a high-risk environment. Many jobs have conditions that are unsafe. Risks are lower in white-collar roles, however, they are not fully removed.
Inspectors and auditors are particularly at risk. Their role often involves them conducting checks in enclosed and confined spaces. A common misconception of confined spaces is that they are small and claustrophobic.
According to the Health and Safety Executive – the true definition of a confined space is a “place which is substantially enclosed (though not always entirely) and where serious injury can occur from hazardous substances or conditions within the space or nearby”.
When you add this factor into consideration with those stated earlier, the definition of high-risk environment expands.
Facts and Figures
According to data compiled by the Association of Workers Compensation Board of Canada (AWCBC), 904 workers died due to work-related causes in 2016. This figure increased to 951 deaths in 2017. These fatalities in 2017 are on top of the 251,508 accepted claims filed for lost time.
Data from the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) reveals that the accepted claims for lost time have increased. 2016 cases accounted for 241,508. These statistics only include cases accepted by the compensation boards. This indicates that while there was a 4% increase from 2016 to 2017, the number is possibly even greater.
It is necessary to compare the fatality rates to identify trends over time between jurisdictions. Such comparisons help to identify the potential changes to the existing regulations and safety measures. They also point towards the greatest need for targeted injury prevention.
Field Eagle
Field Eagle Health & Safety Inspection Software can help mitigate and lower risk. It is a secure audit system that supports mobile inspection and safety audit processes. As a customizable SaaS solution, it integrates with existing corporate workflows and business practices.
Field Eagle helps identify risks across sites. Identified issues at one site are accessible to all auditors and inspectors in real time. Field Eagle can be configured to account for all government regulations. These templates can be edited and updated as regulations change.
Inspection Software Features
The Field Eagle Inspection system incorporates two separate features.
The Field Eagle Server is located at the corporate headquarters. Here, management and leadership staff look after:
- Inspectors,
- Clients,
- Assets,
- Inspection templates, and
- Reports.
The server communicates with field units that inspectors and auditors utilize. These are commonly held on a ruggedized tablet and have the ability to communicate in real time with the server.
Important server features are:
- Inspector Management – which allows you to manage the inspector and their assigned inspections. It has additional features like Inspector Dashboard and Performance Report.
- Data Management – allows businesses to keep and categorize inspected data. It may include documents, regulatory bodies, inspection items, and templates.
- Templates – can be built and customized based on requirements. They can also be configured to force entry, ensuring that inspections are completed correctly.
- Asset Management – In-depth inspections of the assets with unlimited item hierarchies is another great feature.
- Administrative Reports – the Field Eagle server allows businesses to generate reports and conduct analysis in near real time.
The tablet features of Field Eagle include its mobility and offline functioning. The inspectors can conduct inspections anywhere, even without a network connection. The software runs on any Windows system (at least 8.1), iOS, or Android.
Inspectors can compare previous inspections with others. The tool also allows easy access to logged issues and rectifications completed. Inspectors can also generate reports at any point of time. They also need to get an overview of the criticality of the asset being inspected.
Safety First
For any job or work, safety is the first priority. When it comes to safety in the workplace, everything must be thoroughly looked at and evaluated. This is a key requirement for businesses in today’s economy.
Some factors to consider that are within a business’ control include psychological, behavioral, situational, and employee engagement. These factors when combined help to form a safety culture within an organization.
Solutions
For safety solutions, users need the right technology to assist them. External risks such as economic, political, or environmental are difficult to mitigate. Internal risks can be planned for, however.
Field Eagle provides organizations an ability to understand trends. These trends based on audits of other sites and previously completed inspections can help companies put in avoidance strategies. Field Eagle Health & Safety software gives a holistic view of safety and health status at work sites. It makes sure that health standards are properly met.
When issues are not being addressed in a timely manner, alerts can be delivered to leaders to take action. This helps ensure the safety of all the company’s assets, especially the employees.
Conclusion
With Field Eagle, you can manage the inspectors and ongoing inspections. Changing government regulations can be updated quickly. This ensures inspectors in the field have the latest information.
With real-time communication possible between inspectors in the field and the staff at head office, true analysis is possible. Updates for new areas to investigate can be quickly dispatched, ensuring inspections are complete.
Management also benefits with improved reporting and analysis. Tedious manual data entry is no longer a requirement.
