Supply chain training and instruction

Inconsistent processes and procedures increase risk

Having a remote sub-contractor workforce employed on high-risk projects can lead to reduced safety outcomes that significantly impact productivity, profitability and the capability to fulfil contract terms and conditions. The Waterways Alliance (WWA) solved these issues with the effective communication of critical procedural instruction via an easily accessible method for workers in the field.

Lack of compliance can contribute to a decline in safety levels

To foster a safer work environment, the WWA recognised it needed to standardise workplace procedures and processes for its remote workforce.

The alliance, a venture between Melbourne Water, Ecodynamics, Fulton Hogan and SMEC, understood that each of these companies would bring their own set of procedures to the table, which would possibly create confusion at site level. With little visibility into its workforces in the field, the WWA had no control over verification of instruction or whether contractors followed procedural guidelines.

As a result:

• There was a risk that procedures and processes could be inconsistent across jobs and multiple remote workgroups, and
• subsequently the risk of incidents increased

Maximise comprehension with visual content

The WWA needed to increase comprehension and compliance with critical procedural instruction to reduce the risk of on-site incidents.

To improve procedures and processes, the alliance wanted to create visual resources that showed workers how to conduct a task in the safest way possible. Additionally, the visual content had to be easily accessible to remote workers to increase engagement and compliance with standardised procedures.

Fast track compliance and boost productivity

We used our proven Experiential Learning Program (ELP) to help the WWA develop a series of visual resources to standardise procedures across all workgroups. The procedural instruction videos were delivered via the QIN CodeSafe mobile application to remote workers to support them in becoming more compliant.

The WWA took ownership of the creation of visual content and allowed access to the information anytime, anywhere from a mobile device, while tracking and monitoring worker engagement. The alliance identified critical procedures and processes and produced videos for distribution to remote contractors to promote a safer work environment and consistent outcomes.

As a result, the WWA significantly reduced lost time injuries (LTI) in the workplace, winning a Worksafe Victoria Award for its program. The capability to monitor and track engagement with CodeSafe’s platform and mobile application is key to the solution’s success. Creating visual resources for every piece of equipment and making it easily accessible via a mobile app provided the WWA the visibility into which workgroups engaged with and followed instructions.