Global manifesto aims to tackle industrial safety in developing countries

The Global Initiative for Industrial Safety has published its new manifesto, aiming to uphold human rights and support safety improvements in developing countries.

The manifesto has arisen in collaboration with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Lloyd's Register Foundation (LRF), Global Manufacturing and Industrialisation Summit (GMIS) and convened by Cambridge Industrial Innovation Policy (CIIP). The Institue for Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) and British Standards Institute (BSI) also contributed input.

The Manifesto for Global Industrial Safety seeks to define central industry principles, centred around safe adoption of technology in new industrial processes.

The manifesto highlights not only the increased risk to workers in developing countries, but the alarming prevalance of work-related accidents and diseases. It estimates that every year, there are about 395 million work-related accidents worldwide.

Furthermore, 2.9 million workers die because of work-related factors. 2.6m of these deaths are the result of work-related diseases, while 330,000 deaths are attributable to occupational accidents.

Key to understanding industrial safety, the manifesto says, is how organisations utilise the power of technology to address global safety risks. Employers should respond to new changes and opportunities brought about by digitalisation. They should also seek to promote the safe adoption of technology in new industrial processes and the use of technology-enabled safety solutions.

The manifesto points to new safety risks technology presents, as the speed of innovation creates gaps in our knowledge. There are also new sources of physical risks, e.g. mechanical, electrical, thermal, and interaction with cobots (collaborative robots, such as mechanical arms on production lines).

Long-term health risks should not be underestimated; new hazardous substances or radiation are now endangering workers in ways not yet understood on a long-term scale.

With new technologies, however, come new safety solutions. A growing global market of ‘safety tech’ products, alongside new services and continuously generated data offer a promise of greater control over safety risks. For instance, affordable remote-controlled drones allow companies to conduct inspections at high altitudes without exposing workers to risk.

Contributions are requested from industry, government, academia, regulators and international organisations. The manifesto asks them to tackle the global industrial safety challenge, emphasising emerging safety needs driven by the digitalisation of manufacturing.

Five manifesto principles set out the Global Initiative for Industrial Safety’s plan to make positive changes to benefit workers around the world:

1.           Uphold the human right to safe working conditions

2.           Ensure that safety is central to digital decisions

3.           Exploit new digitally-enabled safety solutions

4.           Share, monitor and promote safety lessons

5.           Support safety improvements in developing countries

Carlos Lopez, Head of Unit at CIIP said in a press release accompanying the launch:

“It is the perfect time for the Global Initiative for Industrial Safety to launch the manifesto and start a global movement to address emerging safety issues and leverage technology to find solutions.”

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