Understanding Safety in Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 has brought about a level of automation never seen before in manufacturing. With the entire picture still developing, industry 4.0 safety demands constant upgrades of safeguards and safety procedures. 

The technological advances have no limit and the same translates to the required safety procedures. When you hear industry 4.0, you think automation. As such, it is plausible to think safety is not that big an issue, which certainly isn’t the case. Safety in an industry 4.0 platform is usually geared towards facilitating safe interaction between humans and machines. 

Why Industry 4.0 Safety Is a Tricky Affair

To be fair, most of these machines come pre-equipped with an array of safeguards in their control systems. 

The challenge comes in the sheer amount of education that these systems require. The owners and employees need to take in a lot of information about these machines and how to use them. 

The rule is that all users should be well informed, trained, and continuously updated in the event there are changes in these technologies. This is especially the case when new technologies are being integrated into a system. 

Now, as an industry 4.0 enthusiast, you may be thinking, why not get a one-off system that’s already fully automated in lieu of constantly upgrading the one you have now? It is not that bad an idea. The only problem is the massive design challenges posed by instituting a fully automated system. 

It is nigh on impossible to automate operations without constant upgrades, which translates to constantly improving and reviewing your safety procedure and strategies.

How to Handle Safety in Industry 4.0

Human error is without a doubt the top cause of occupational accidents in industries. The risk is reduced by quite the margin on an industry 4.0 platform because of all the automation. 

Be that as it may, a new risk is introduced in the shape of machine failure. These contraptions are rather large and complex, especially in modern industries, and failure could mean less-than-ideal consequences. 

You can imagine a 300-foot oil rig failing and spewing hot tar or whatever in all directions. I cannot specify enough just how important avoiding machine failure is in the context of worker safety. There’s the why, here is the how:

Develop Training Modules for Employees

Automation, as is the case in industry 4.0, usually means a switch up in work schedules so your shift management software may need a tweak or two. 

The reason for automation is an attempt at quality and productivity elevation. The blowback involves freeing up a lot of human capital. 

As such, your employees certainly need some training to help them adjust to the new roles and schedules. With respect to safety, have training modules complete with the new safety and health standards especially for workers who will be interacting with the machinery. 

Integrate your solutions with your shift management software to come up with the new schedules and employee roles after bringing in some new machinery.

Consider Your Floor Plan

Machines and human resources need to coexist in an industry 4.0 platform. If there is any critical issue or machine failure for that matter, you should try to ensure the damage is minimal, to say the least. 

The workplace should be designed such that employees can safely work in spaces around where machinery and robotics are installed and operated. The best way to go is using CAD programs to do the 3D scans prior to going full auto. Ensure the setup is such that accessing the machinery is possible for safe repair and maintenance.

Use Advanced Wearables

This especially works in semi-auto scenarios. What I mean by semi-auto is there indeed is some level of automation but human staff are still involved so it’s not fully automated. I’ll use an sEMG as an example. A surface electromyogram is a device that can measure muscle activity and identify potential fatigue, which can be a source of lapses in concentration and probable accidents.