Whether we like it or not, the fast and furious pace at which technology is being developed and adopted in business leaves us with no choice but to adopt these new technologies or be left behind. Technologies like robotic process automation, which allows the automation of any repetitive task, virtual and extended reality, that allows you to make learning and training a real-life experience, and 5G, that will allow you to do all this at super-fast speed and to be fully mobile.
For those who watched the Fifth Element, with Bruce Willis and thought it was science fiction….is not far-off what reality will soon be!
So, anyone who manages risk or is involved in any way with risk management has to ask – are you ready for the future of Work Health & Safety management?
These new technologies are going to bring the ability to increase compliance and reduce risk faster than ever before, but how can they be embraced and harnessed.
Automation
When someone say’s automation to me, I immediately think of a robot physically assembling parts on a production line, or the robots that spray paint production line cars. But automation goes way beyond this. Think of your employee/contractor or visitor health and safety inductions – which can be very time-consuming and costly but are absolutely crucial to the success of any business. Induction software, such as Rapid Induct, can be used to automate a large portion of this work quite quickly and easily!
What about risk audits, which typically involve many bits of paper and audit findings that sometimes do not result in the required action to resolve. Using automation to assign audits to the right person or company, tracking the completion of the audit, and automating assigning actions for findings to the right person or company is something easily done, using solutions like Rapid Audit!
Savvy businesses are already using process automation to improve productivity and safety standards – which can also be automated and assigned to the right people periodically – using the latest version.
The great news is that, as automation being adopted more and more, so the cost thereof is reducing significantly, and cost-effective solutions such as the Rapid suits of products offered by OVS Solutions.
Your main reasons to get on board with automation will likely be to improve and manage your health and safety processes. You can also embrace automation in order to control various processes, manage tasks, track performance and plan for the future.
Automation also offers an opportunity for the business to align with employees and contractors, as the more productive people can be at work, and the better they can manage their tasks, the happier your team will be.
Mobile Technology
Smartphones are becoming one of the most essential tools for employees/contractors/stakeholders in any business. Mobile technology is a rising trend – and continues to grow at an alarming rate. Mobile technology enhances flexibility, improves the accuracy of reporting, and helps make business processes simple.
A great example of how mobile technology can assist in improving your EHS is incident reporting. Available right now, and a very effective cost is the software to allow incidents being reported on-site, as they happen, and to include photos and video’s in the report. Software like Rapid Incident Reporting will ensure the workflow process is followed and the correct information entered. It will also notify all required immediately – on their smartphones. The same solutions apply for inspection registers.
Being able to access incident reports and inspection registers via mobile devices allows for easier and safer monitoring when at work. The software also makes it simple and easy to do, so your staff will follow the required process and therefore you can improve your health and safety execution, further improve productivity, and increase staff morale.
Ultimately, mobile technologies offer the flexibility to make it something people want to do rather than have to do!
Wearable Safety Technology and Smart PPE
Wearable safety technology, like a smartwatch, are increasingly being adopted by health & safety staff, and contribute to increased safety. Imagine being able to send all your staff an SMS, which they receive on their smartwatch, advising them of a safety alert!
Sensors that monitor, collect, and record biometric, location and movement data in real-time are increasingly being integrated into “smart” personal protective equipment (PPE) and worksite clothing.
Rapid Visitor Access is an excellent example of how geo-location is used to ensure an employee/contractor or visitor is physically on-site before they can actually sign-in.
Industry-Specific Apps
The increased use of EHS software by companies has resulted in solutions that are tailored for specific industries. This allows companies to enjoy the benefit of specialised solutions, that would traditionally have cost millions of Rands to develop, at a very low cost.
The use of API (application programming interface) technology to integrate data from different software platforms also makes the use of this software highly desirable. This is a great check to make when purchasing any software – make sure it can be integrated!
Your Risk Universe
From my many years of experience in managing a corporate business, I know that managing your risk universe can be quite challenging. Just getting all the information you need for your risk register is a daunting task, never mind keeping it updated and ensuring it is being actioned! The amount of people, stakeholders, third parties involved is often extensive, and the ability to ensure they are all operating off the same platform and keeping the data in the same place is, in my humble opinion, one of the most value-adding software services you could ever subscribe to. Solutions like Rapid Risk, developed by some of the worlds leading risk experts, are one of the best investments a company could ever make! I can highly recommend adopting this incredible technology.