Browse All Entries

Membrane Deployment Device - Water Resources Alliance

Best solution to a workplace health and safety issue - 2012 Awards

The Water Resources Alliance was formed to deliver a program of works for Melbourne Water. Over the duration of the Alliance we will deliver more than $650 million dollars worth of critical infrastructure to the community. Our project at the Werribee Treatment Plant will mitigate odour emissions, optimise treatment processes and ensure biogas security by removing the existing 42,000 m2 anaerobic cover that is damaged and replacing it with a much larger 93,000 m2 (4 times bigger than the MCG) segmented HDPE cover on the 55 East sewerage lagoon. Improvements to work methods were identified to reduce the high risk of manual handling injuries given the weight of the roll of HDPE material (refer image 1) being used to replace the old damaged cover. We had a Membrane Deployment Device (MDD) manufactured (refer images 2 & 3) ) to act as a dispenser for the rolls of HDPE material (7 metre wide x 105 metre long and 2mm thick, approximately 1.5 tonne) to reduce the risk of manual handling injuries from the push – pull force required to move the material.

Manual handling, slip, trip & fall solution for Fire Fighting vehicles - Department of Sustainability & Environment

Best solution to a workplace health and safety issue - 2012 Awards

The Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) leads the Victorian Government's efforts to sustainably manage water resources and catchment, climate change, bushfires, parks and other public land, forests, biodiversity and ecosystem conservation. DSE and Parks Victoria have increased the level of planned burning by 29%. This year, 748 planned burns have been conducted to treat 188,997 hectares of public land. The Retro fit slip on unit has been redesigned to eliminate and reduce manual handling injuries and slip, trip and fall injuries when operating the Fire Fighting appliance. The Retro fit slip on unit is being fitted to 100 DSE fire units across Victoria.

Meritor Hub Bearing and Seal Press - Meritor Heavy Vehicle Systems Aust. Ltd

Best solution to a workplace health and safety issue - 2012 Awards

Meritor is a global leader in providing innovative drivetrain mobility and braking solutions for original equipment manufacturers of trucks, trailers and specialty vehicles. A major manual handling risk did exist during the process of installing bearings and seals into axle hub and drum assemblies. This was a very manual, heavy and labour intensive process that exposed operators to a number of risks including crushing and strain injuries. These risks to the operators have now been eliminated with the unique design and installation of a new hub bearing and seal press. This equipment is now being considered by other Meritor plants worldwide.

Wireless movement and muscle sensor technology - dorsaVi

Best solution to a workplace health and safety issue - 2012 Awards

dorsaVi has revolutionised how business can quantitatively assess workplace risk and rehabilitate injured workers through wireless medical sensor technology. Designed by a physiotherapist, the medical device consists of four non-invasive, pain-free sensors placed on the employee's back to record the body’s movement in the work environment. The sensors measure movement and muscle activity of the back and shoulders showing how much they are placed at risk at the work place. The sensors transmit wirelessly to a small device carried by the worker. The real time data is then available for OHS managers to pinpoint the exact part of the work process that creates risk to the worker. The improved monitoring data allows companies to streamline practices, improve worker conditions, safety and evaluate the effectiveness of old processes and equipment against new.

babyhood Ergonomic Cot - Goodstart Early Learning Limited

Best solution to a workplace health and safety issue - 2012 Awards

Goodstart Early Learning is Australia’s largest early learning and care provider with more than 650 centres across Australia. The Goodstart team of 15,000 staff cares for and supports more than 72,000 children from 60,000 families nation-wide. Our mission is to provide high quality, accessible, affordable and community-connected early learning in our centres and partner and openly collaborate with the sector to drive change for the benefit of all children. We’re for children, not for profit and believe the first five years matter and last a lifetime. A number of the Goodstart centres were reviewed by WorkSafe Victoria as part of the Children's Services project. The visiting Inspectors indentified the task of lifting or lowering of children into and out of a drop side cot to be one that posed a risk of musculoskeletal disorder injury to our staff. These cots are located in the nursery rooms in many of our centres. Goodstart through consultation with the early learning sector and a number of leading ergonomists, was able to collaborate with manufacturer Babyhood to develop and produce a high mattress based cot with demonstrated potential to reduce back and shoulder injury risks for educator's and provide an even safer environment for the children in our care.

Design a Solution - Southern Health Central Production Kitchen

Best solution to a workplace health and safety issue - 2012 Awards

Southern Health Central Production Kitchen (SH CPK) has been providing nutritious, healthy meals to its clients for over 25 years. Southern Health CPK produces over 1.5 million meals for all Southern Health sites and five Eastern Health facilities annually using the cook chill system. An important part of cook chill food is Extended Shelf Life product which is chilled in a water bath. We employ more than 35 permanent and casual staff.

Safe Manual Handling of Solar Panels - Brivis Climate Systems Pty Ltd

Best solution to a workplace health and safety issue - 2012 Awards

Brivis Climate Systems is a division of GWA Group. Brivis is the market leader and has been designing and manufacturing climate systems in Australia for 50 years. Dux Hot Water Systems is also a division of GWA Group. Brivis warehouse and distribute Dux Hot Water Systems. When risk assessing the manual handling requirements for our Despatch operators, the manual handling of solar panels was highlighted as a potential MSD.

Bob Jane - Road To Safety - Bob Jane Corporation

Best solution to a workplace health and safety issue - 2012 Awards

Bob Jane T-Marts are specialists in tyres and wheels for on road vehicles. Bob Jane is changing the way they manage their health and safety and has embarked on a number of initiatives on their "road to safety" to raise the awareness of the importance of safety for their employees, public and business partners. In order to capture their safety information and make it available for their employees and management team they introduced the CS Intranet Safety Management system which is their "Road to Safety" portal nationally.

Work Place Safety Hand Signal Communication System - © Life Safe World™ 2012 - Life Safe World™

Best solution to a workplace health and safety issue - 2012 Awards

In our proposal as part of the Work Safe Safety Awards for 2012, we have designed and produced a simple Work Place Safety Hand Signal Communication System - © Life Safe World™ 2012 Our accompanying Work Place Safety Hand signal Communication System – Video 1 and 2 - © Life Safe World™ 2012 to this Application visually explains how this simple one handed safety communication system works This safety hand signal system encourages workers in all work places to communicate safety messages - i.e. from management to worker and worker to worker to abide by regulation work place safety practices and varying situations as they arise - i.e. gaseous leaks, welding flashes, fire alert and so on. We have developed a communication system by using single hand movements against a persons body means a specific safe work practice while working in all factories construction areas and wherever else required is required across work places. The person giving the signs will be referred to as the “signaller”, shall use the hand signals give safety instructions or arising situations to the person(s) receiving the hand signs referred to as “the receiver”. The basic technique (by the signaller) is to use a flat horizontal hand in a back and forth motion across the neck region to attract attention of the other worker(s) or management – the receiver (and or maybe a voice call or whistle could be incorporated to enhance the receivers attention more quickly). The next movement of the single hand is a basic hand display that relates to a particular component of safety or worker safe well being i.e. a hard hat is required, full face respirator is required , a dangerous electrical situation and so on The receiver is then obliged to rectify the safety issue being given by the signaller We believe this communication system with help promote safety in the work place as it is direct ,specific and clean cut with the specific parameters being transmitted or conveyed Our Business: As a Father/Son business partnership we have observed a lack of decisive communication in promoting a safe work place We have a business partnership across a diverse range of service industry sectors including contract/general cleaning/property services and general maintenance to landscaping We are subcontracted to carry out works as stated above across various industry sectors and we find a general lack safety practices being carried out on a lot of work sites and in factories We have found in the majority of occasions we have been engaged on work sites that after being inducted with safety work practices and then go to carry out our works, we find a total negligence of work place safety procedures by management This happens in our case when we are subcontracted in the construction industry with our cleaning business by several large companies

Python Strap the safe, strong alternative to Steel Strap. - Chelton Packaging

Best solution to a workplace health and safety issue - 2012 Awards

Chelton Packaging is a packaging supply company. We are the wholesaler of the Python Strap family of products. The Python Strap products are a safe alternative to steel strap and consist of woven polyester strapping, composite polyester strapping, buckles, dispensers and tools.