Page 50 - OHS, November/December 2022

90TH ANNIVERSARY
The Future: How Safety Will Continue to Evolve
Let’s take a look into the future of the industry.
Over the course of the year, the OH&S editorial team has looked back on the history of the occupational health and safety industry as a way to celebrate 90 years of bringing continued education and timely information to safety
professionals. We touched on the storied past of safety, including fall protection, hand protection, respiratory protection, industrial hygiene and more, but now it is time to discuss the future.
In our last article celebrating the 90th anniversary of Occupational Health & Safety magazine, we are going to touch on the future of safety. In a way, we have already arrived in the future of safety, especially when you look at the implementation of technology on worksites around the country, but there are so many other ways safety will evolve over the course of the next few decades.
Technology Brings Enhanced Insights
It doesn’t matter what industry you are part of, the evolution of technology will always be part of the larger conversation when discussing the future. Specific to the safety and health industry, technology has always played a large part in ensuring goals are met, data is captured and records s are kept up to date.
In the future, I think we will see even more technology layered into worksites to aid in preventing incidents. Let’s take a look at three areas of safety technology that could be utilized in the future.
Data Capture and Analysis. While capturing data for enhanced insights is not new to the industry, the ability to capture enormous amounts of high-quality data, analyze it and predict room for improvement at facilities will be critical in the future. As high production becomes necessary to maintain everyday lifestyles for consumers, understanding fast paced environments and the associated risks in real time could help to reduce occupational injuries and fatalities.
With the introduction of artificial intelligence and machine learning, large amounts of data from inputs such as video feeds, smart metering, telemetry, personal monitoring devices and smartphones will be processed at a rate unintelligible to our average workforce. Taking advantage of these insights can help safety directors and facility owners better predict, identify and correct problems before they turn into costly injuries, traumatic fatalities or have large impacts on communities and environments.
Wearables. Similarly to how wearables and connected devices are taking up every space in your personal life, they will soon be doing the same in your professional career. While there are many companies already producing wearable devices to improve worker health and safety, the worksites around the country have been slow to adopt.
In the future, it will be commonplace for workers to be digitally connected to safety directors in virtually every way. For instance, outdoor workers may have their heart rates and temperatures monitored through a device that can report the symptoms of heat
BY SYDNY SHEPARD
illness before it occurs while reporting the exact location of that worker should they need emergency services.
Personal protective equipment with built-in smart technology will also become a common occurrence as well. We’ve already seen the latest technology included in exoskeletons to reduce musculoskeletal disorders, we’ve seen devices layered into hard hats for more rapid communication and even protective clothing embedded with tech that can monitor the elements around the worker.
Robotics. We cannot talk about safety without conferring with the Hierarchy of Controls, which first asks safety professionals to do what they can to eliminate hazards first to reduce the risk of injury and illness. A popular way of eliminating risks is to find a way to automate a process without having a worker there to suffer injuries.
While it sounds like the addition of automation and robotics may be a scary idea for the future of work, it isn’t all bad. The more technology you bring into a workspace, the more training and oversight that technology needs. A human element will always be necessary for technology to achieve its full potential and leaps forward in tech do not mean a reduction in staff, OSH and otherwise.
ESG and DEI Become Priorities
If you haven’t heard of ESG or DEI, you need to brush up on your acronyms because you’ll be hearing them a lot in the future. As we continue to see the workforce shift to become younger, the priorities of the employee will change. The younger generations, such as Millennials and Gen Z, will want to work for companies that prioritize Environmental, Sustainability and Governance (ESG) and Diversity, Equality and Inclusion (DEI). Let’s define each of these.
Environmental, Sustainability and Governance. According to the Corporate Finance Institute, ESG is a framework designed to be integrated into an organization’s strategy. It takes a holistic view that sustainability extends beyond just environmental issues but also social (fair wages, employee engagement) and governance (company leadership and management).
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. DEI is any policy or practice that is designed to make employees of various backgrounds feel welcome and ensure they have support to perform their duties at the fullest of their ability. Diversity refers to the presence of differences within a given setting, including race, ethnicity, gender, age and socioeconomic background. Equity is the act of ensuring all processes and programs are impartial, fair and provide equal possible outcomes for everyone. Finally, inclusion is the practice of making people feel a sense of belonging at work.
While ESG and DEI are very different, they both serve to reach a similar goal, which is to create a more morally conscious company overall. Where safety is concerned, EHS and OSH professionals will need to be more conscious of the kinds of PPE
46 Occupational Health & Safety | NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2022 www.ohsonline.com