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Success by Systematic Safety: ISSA Mining discusses solutions for small mine operations at Denver conference
The mining industry is a crucial provider for virtually every person’s needs and thus indispensable. Yet, mining is a risky business: plenty of high risk factors at the work-place can severely affect miner’s life and health. Safe operations, ensuring every worker will return home healthy every day, are a challenge even to businesses em-ploying thousands of workers, even with highly competent full-time safety and health experts available on a continuous basis. And still, the vast improvements in respect to safety and health of large scale operators around the world show impressively what is possible if all relevant factors are taken into consideration, from the commit-ment of the management to systematic risk assessment, technical, organizational and personal prevention as well as motivational factors, up to considering the role of contractors.
But what is the situation of the vast number of small scale mines? Typically, those operations can not easily fall back on the advice of safety and health experts on hand 24/7. Their reactions to situations which are sometimes difficult to foresee have to be fast and flexible many times, which increases the risk of an accident drastically. Commonly, the range of tasks and challenges is higher for each single employee in a small mine than it is in a large scale operation with more constant and shared processes, balanced responsibilities and long-term production planning.
Does this mean that working in a small mine or quarry is inevitably more risky than in a large operation? The answer is no! Many well organized small businesses in the mining industry demonstrate a clean accident record for many years. This success is most of the time influenced by effective strategies for safety and health at work. Many years of international experience in the prevention of accidents and occupa-tional health hazards in small scale mine show how certain factors play vital roles, in every operation, worldwide.
Efficient OSH organization also in SMEs is not a miracle, it can be done – and it will save lives!
All throughout the world, methods, tools and concepts tailored to the need of small and medium-sized mines have been designed. Some solutions proved to be highly efficient and practical.
The presentation discussed basic principles and examples of successful prevention in the industry including “Seven Golden Rules” for safe and economic production – basing on decades of comprehensive experience in the field.
The presentation introduced among other the Employer’s Model, a tried and long-term tested approach in the aggregate industry to involve the management into occupational safety and health, to qualify and motivate responsible stakeholders. Going along with consultation by health and safety experts who know what is going on in mines and quarries due to daily field experience, accidents and incidents can be drastically cut down!
How can qualified and practical information on the efficient organization of safety and health at work get transferred into businesses? The presentation showed the design of media and seminars suitable to the needs of the target group and talk about models to implement suitable OSH management systems, lean and practical enough to find the full support of operators while highly efficient.
Helmut Ehnes discussed tools and methods for systematic safety in small mines
Live saver: rescue equipment used to save miners at the Chile operations has been on display at the expo
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