I am excited to be able to share my insights, knowledge and experiences with you with these blogs! I’m passionate about safety, and being able to help ensure teams don’t fall behind in their ability to manage people’s health and safety at work – wherever your office may be.
The defining time when I firmly knew I was going to get formally qualified in health and safety was in the field in the Middle East. I was on a multiple industry base, being exposed to industries such as medical/hospitals, aviation, engineering, construction, transport and logistics, catering, utilities, and Hazchem, which became quite overwhelming; especially as this took a toll on my personal life.
That is when there was that light bulb moment of “You can save more people by being off the front-line and teaching”, so that is what I embarked on.
Interacting with all these industries and units required constant communication, and effective means of doing so. Any time a radio transmission was faulty or unable to get on the line, the I was presented with more risks. In the field, where safety of your team is paramount, a breakdown of communications makes everything more difficult.
This is where procedures on how to proceed in tough situations need to be set, and consequently followed; but it takes everyone on the team to keep everybody safe and ensure they get back home.
What’s in your safety management system?
Embarking on my quest to be hands-on and teach people about safety, looking into ways of doing so, finding effective solutions that would make a difference and continuing to ensure communications are taken seriously became my mission.
Last month in September, Melbourne University at the Centre for Disaster Management and Public Safety held its latest meeting with global experts and parties from government agencies. One of the points we discussed was the importance of state and federal governments alike to implement systems that were able to not only record but work to prevent workplace injuries.
This proves, time and time again, how important it is for workers across these varying industries to be involved in safety training.
The enforcement approaches traditionally does the opposite of its intent. Systems such as INX Software assist with accountability and identification of the failure and success of an organisation’s safety management, making the complex easy to manage. Platforms like these address the complexities of statutory and common law duty of care, that makes it congruent with industry expectations and demands, and with that is highly valuable.
Andrew Speckley, Safety and Risk Consultant, Australia
Andrew is a passionate Safety and Risk Consultant, Speaker, and Trainer who lives in Melbourne, Australia. He is a seasoned safety and risk professional who has worked in high-risk environments for over 30 years in private and government sectors across Australia and internationally, and has a degree in Social Sciences.
Before him becoming a safety and risk consultant, Andrew was a Victoria Police Officer and also served in the ADF. I assist with the future of emergency service and government communications.
Andrew has taught occupational health and safety (OHS) management practices, ran the state-wide traffic safety and management system for QTMR, investigated matters for Vic Traffic Accident Commission and Qld WorkCover and business clients, and managed the safety of the public, road crews, first responders and contractors.
Be informed of the latest industry news, key updates and our product and version releases, by following us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. You can also get them delivered straight to your mailbox here.
