Severn Trent is improving safety for its lone workers by rolling out a dedicated digital radio platform across sites affected by poor mobile signal coverage.
The UK water authority has been working with ANT Telecom to deploy an advanced communication solution to improve efficiency and safety at clean water, water production and sewage sites in the Midlands.
Vicky Del Busso, contracts manager for Severn Trent, explains:
"We have a number of workers at our sites that operate underground in basements, draw off tunnels and pipe galleries; environments that can pose a risk to staff.
Moreover as some of these employees are also working alone they can often be the only person on site and so ensuring their safety is absolutely paramount."
Furthermore, as plant access is heavily restricted and many sites run by a single or a small number of operators, suppliers would often be unable to gain entry to the site until operators returned back to the control room causing significant site inefficiencies as well as additional re-delivery costs, when suppliers were left waiting at the access gate.
ANT Telecom recommended upgrading to a dedicated digital radio platform combined with repeaters, transceivers and digital lone worker radios.
After understanding the key problem for Severn Trent sites was a lack of WIFI and mobile coverage, this was the best solution in terms of synthesising with its current infrastructure.
The radio systems have been implemented across a number of Severn Trent’s sites since 2018, rising to fifteen sites in total by the beginning of 2020.
The radio solution provides site wide radio coverage enabling operators to communicate between themselves and the control centre whilst workers carry out tasks in all areas of the site.
For even greater levels of site and environmental protection, the Critical Alarm Management solution provides integration with Severn Trent’s SCADA alarm system, which means operators receive critical alarms irrespective of where they are on-site.
Therefore, if any pumps or critical assets fail, the system will immediately alert the operators directly on their radio handsets so that they are aware of any issues.
This allows for incidents to be dealt with efficiently – critical when you consider that a leak into the local river system could cost millions in fines and lots of bad PR, if it is not responded to correctly and efficiently.
If operators have an accident when working alone, they can alert colleagues by radioing for help or pressing their panic button on their radio.
If an incident occurs and they’re rendered unconscious, colleagues are automatically alerted when the radio’s tilt sensor is activated to ensure that help arrives as quickly as possible.
GPS location enables the response team to locate the operator without the need to search any large areas.
Additionally, the radio solution has a mechanism to integrate with Severn Trent’s gate access control system, so operators can speak with suppliers or those wishing to gain access at the gate and allow or deny them entry – directly on their radio handset.
