‍The importance of incident investigations in heavy industry

Accidents in heavy industry can have severe consequences—for workers, for companies and for everyone’s bottom line. It’s why incident investigations are so important as they play a crucial role in understanding the root causes of accidents and mean more successful preventative measures can be implemented in the future. In recent years, new technology like AI vison has emerged as a valuable tool to enhance incident investigations, giving new insights to improve safety protocols. 

Incident investigations in heavy industry are important in order to:

• Identify root causes: Incident investigations are a way to find the underlying causes of an incident or near-miss event. This understanding is critical if companies want to prevent similar incidents happening in future. 
• Improve safety culture: By investigating incidents and near-miss events, organisations can demonstrate their commitment to safety and promote a culture of continuous improvement.
• Reduce risks: By revealing potential hazards and risks associated with specific processes, equipment or activities, corrective action can be taken to reduce the likelihood of future incidents.
• Enhance training: Gaps in training and competence that may have contributed to an incident can be revealed through the investigation process. It means companies can then better improve their training programs and make sure employees have the necessary skills and the space to continuously learn so they can do their jobs safely.
• Ensure compliance: Because heavy industry is one of the most dangerous places for people to work, incident investigations are often required by regulatory agencies. This ensures compliance with relevant safety regulations and standards.

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The investigative process

Incident investigations in heavy industry relies on the systematic approach that ensures all relevant information is gathered, analysed and factored in to find out the root causes of safety issues. The investigation process generally takes place over four steps:

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1. Gather relevant information: Collecting as much relevant information related to the incident is important to ensure an investigation is as thorough as possible. This information can include witness statements, equipment logs, relevant documentation and with the help of AI vision like the kind Blindsight uses, the automated incident reports including video of the event in real time—both leading up to and after the event took place.
2. Analyse the data: Like all data, it doesn’t just have to be collected but analysed so it means something. With the help of the Blindsight Index, safety personnel are more able to evaluate the relevant information and identify any concerning pattens and trends that led to the incident. 
3. Determine the root cause/s: The data analysis allows investigators to identify why the incident occured. This can then be verified through witness testimony and the non-biased evidence provided in real-time by AI vision like the kind used by Blindsight. 
4. Come up with safety recommendations: Once the root cause or causes have been determined, the investigators can develop safety recommendations so similar incidents are prevented from happening in future. 

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AI vision: transforming incident investigations

AI vision is emerging as a critical tool for heavy industry to ensure safety and actually make the process of incident investigations easier through:

• Real-time Monitoring: AI vision systems can be integrated into heavy machinery to monitor the worksite. This allows for real-time identification of potential hazards, alerting operators and allowing for immediate intervention to prevent an accident.
• Automated Video: AI Vision systems can generate automatic reporting of near-misses and incidents, including recording video in real time. In the future as the AI vision algorithms advance, they’ll be able to analyse this video footage to detect unsafe behaviours or conditions. This will eliminate the need for manual reviewing of extensive video material, saving time and resources.
• Object and Behaviour Recognition: AI vision like the kind used by Blindsight can identify specific objects and people and track their movements. This allows the tech to alert and prevent situations that could lead to accidents.
• Incident Reconstruction: By analysing video footage, computer vision allows for safety personnel to examine the sequence of events leading up to an incident. This helps investigators identifying the root causes more accurately.
• Data-driven Insights: Computer vision systems generate vast amounts of data. This means organisations are able to extract valuable insights to identify trends, patterns, and areas for improvement in safety protocols. This is made even easier with the Blindsight Index and allows organisations to foster a culture of continuous safety improvement.
• Transparency and objectivity: The use of non-biased information gathering generated by AI systems like Blindsight means that the investigative process is objective, thorough and transparent. Like a truly skilled investigator, Blindsight doesn’t place blame. Rather, AI helps to identify the root cause of the incident and provide data to take corrective action to prevent similar incidents.

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Incident investigations play a vital role in heavy industries—ensuring the safety of workers and improving operational efficiency. The integration of AI vision technology into incident investigation brings a new level of precision and automation. By harnessing the power of AI vision, heavy industry can enhance safety protocols, prevent accidents, and create safer working environments for their employees. 

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To see how AI vision can help with your incident investigations and help to stop them before they happen, book your free demo today.

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