Activate Edge AI to Maximise Manufacturing Workplace Safety
Published on : Monday 02-08-2021
Creating a safe work environment isn’t just good for employees, it’s good for business as well, says Venu Gooty.
Workplace safety has always been a top priority for manufacturers, but it has taken on increased significance in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2020 alone, employees throughout the manufacturing industry filed hundreds of worker safety lawsuits. In fact, 68% of workers globally reported they do not feel completely safe at work, citing inadequate personal protective equipment (PPE) and employer non-compliance with sanitation protocols, mask wearing and temperature checks.
As manufacturing workers get back to the shop floor post-Covid, many manufacturers are rethinking their workplace safety strategies. With businesses paying out an estimated US$1 billion per week in direct workers’ compensation costs (pre-Covid), enabled in part by ineffective monitoring systems, more than ever it’s critical that manufacturers embrace the benefits of edge artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to improve workplace safety.
Edge artificial intelligence capabilities can play an important role in delivering improved data quality effectiveness in real time which can lead to better decision making and safer workplaces. AI-powered solutions can help manufacturers transform video data from IoT connected sensors into actionable insights.
Activate AI to address 3 critical workplace safety challenges
The manufacturing industry is turning to AI-powered solutions to improve worker safety, increase operational efficiencies and save costs. While artificial intelligence can improve workplace safety in a number of ways, following are three specific use cases where edge AI solutions can make a real impact.
1. Slip-and-fall prevention
Manufacturing warehouses and facilities can be hazardous workplaces, with employees at risk from some of the most common causes of fatal and serious injury, including falls from high places and slippery materials. In fact, many on-the-job injuries are caused by slip-and-fall injuries that happen when debris, machine lubricant, fluids or beverages are spilled on the workplace floor. Most companies use CCTV to monitor the floor and the employee traffic. However, using image recognition and artificial intelligence, companies can proactively monitor and identify the spills.
Today’s companies can deploy AI and internet of things (IoT) technology to send real-time alerts to address accidents sooner. For example, the technology can notify a workplace’s cleaning crew, so they can clean up a spill immediately or employees nearest the spill can be alerted via GPS communications.
2. Forklift injury prevention
One of the key workplace risks in the warehouse comes from the operation of forklifts. Despite strict regulations around maintenance, driver training and other protocols, operators are too often at risk of being crushed in overturning accidents and workers run the risk of being struck by the vehicles or by its falling loads.
In fact, it’s estimated that 70% of workplace injuries or deaths happen due to interactions between workers and heavy vehicles. Of those, 30% are directly attributed to forklifts.
However, AI-driven solutions with appropriate sensors and cameras can warn drivers of colleagues or obstructions in their blind spot. Some systems can provide a 360-degree view of the vehicle that can improve situational awareness so drivers no longer have to look over their shoulder.
Additionally, edge AI algorithms can alert authorities when forklift operators aren’t appropriately following regulations, wearing seat belts, using phones or even smoking on the job. Dedicated cameras can instantly detect dangerous driver behaviour, sounding an alert or even disabling the vehicle when necessary. Advanced systems can leverage driver identification via facial recognition to ensure the forklifts can only be operated by trained, qualified personnel.
3. PPE compliance
In 2020 alone, employees throughout the manufacturing industry filed hundreds of worker safety lawsuits. In fact, 68% of workers globally reported they do not feel completely safe at work, citing inadequate personal protective equipment (PPE) and employer noncompliance with sanitation protocols, mask wearing and temperature checks.
Monitoring workers for wearing personal protective equipment can effectively be addressed via computer vision. Using standard RGB cameras, computer vision technology can detect a lack of or improper PPE usage. Upon recognising a safety violation, the video analytics platform can then generate email or SMS text alerts to notify safety supervisors. Live updates can also be published to dashboards in high traffic areas such as entrances to the manufacturing floor to prevent potentially dangerous situations.
With an automated AI system at work, even little violations, such as taking off a facemask or helmet, are reported and corrected. As you calculate your safety precautions index, you can measure how safe people are in a given area, regarding safety compliances and PPE.
HGS Digital adopts a brain-bot approach to automating workplace safety, supported by its Security Operation Centre (SOC), which monitors your site remotely, training the AI cameras to determine what is false and what is positive, with the ultimate goal of turning your platform into a fully automated, intelligent hazard detection system. Marrying the automated world with the real world, the HGS Digital solution creates more opportunities in the workplace and enables organisations to concentrate on what matters most: the trust and safety of their employees.
Creating a safe work environment isn’t just good for employees, it’s good for business. Advances in artificial intelligence (AI), that combine machine learning, computer vision and analytics can be a game changer in improving workplace safety for manufacturers by monitoring and preventing accidents before they happen.
References
1. https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2021/01/05/covid-19-lawsuits-pandemic-spawned-over-1-000-workplace-lawsuits/4135280001/
2. https://www.ehstoday.com/covid19/article/21152575/employees-dont-feel-safe-going-to-work-study-finds
3. https://hgs.cx/digital/solutions/artificial-intelligence-workplace-safety/
4. https://www.osha.gov/businesscase
5. https://hgs.cx/white-papers/a-new-frontier-can-artificial-intelligence-save-lives-in-the-workplace/
6. https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2021/01/05/covid-19-lawsuits-pandemic-spawned-over-1-000-workplace-lawsuits/4135280001/
7. https://www.ehstoday.com/covid19/article/21152575/employees-dont-feel-safe-going-to-work-study-finds
Venu Gooty is the VP of Digital Strategy and Transformation for HGS Digital. With over 18 years of technology-led transformation experience, Venu is a skilled thought leader in the space of digital CX, data sciences, intelligent automation and cloud computing.
