Safety remains a critical priority in sectors such as mining, oil and gas, nuclear and industrial manufacturers. Workers often operate in close proximity to heavy machinery across vast industrial sites and may be exposed to hazardous environments and conditions. Maintaining strict safety standards is therefore essential, not only to protect employees and contractors, but also to ensure compliance with increasingly stringent regulations.
Failure to comply with safety standards can have severe consequences. Operations may be suspended for extended periods, resulting in significant revenue losses and ongoing operational costs. Companies may also face legal action and reputational damage, and in extreme cases, risk losing their licences to operate. Most importantly, poor safety compliance can result in serious injuries, permanent disability or even loss of life.
The South African regulatory environment
In South Africa, safety in high-hazard critical industries is governed by occupational health and safety legislation, as well as environmental regulations such as the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) and the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act (AQA).
NEMA provides the overarching framework for environmental governance in the country and places a duty of care on companies to prevent pollution and environmental degradation. The Air Quality Act regulates atmospheric emissions and requires facilities to obtain Atmospheric Emission Licences and comply with strict emission standards. Importantly, directors and operators can now be held personally liable for non-compliance.
Despite the challenging operating environments in the mining sector, the industry has made significant progress in improving safety over the past few decades. Initiatives such as the CEO Zero Harm Forum and the MineSafe Conference have helped drive industry-wide efforts to reduce accidents and fatalities.
Anglo American says mining fatalities in South Africa declined from 553 in 1995 to 219 in 2007, and further decreased to 49 in 2022. While this progress is significant, the ultimate goal remains zero fatalities.
According to Quentin Daffarn, Pr. Eng and CEO of UC-Wireless, technology can play a key role in helping the industry move closer to that goal.
“Making safety smarter is a core driver for us,” he says. “Many of the technologies currently deployed in these industries still have gaps. The mining industry needs to leverage integrated internet of things (IOT) solutions to truly make safety smarter.”
Addressing the limitations of traditional systems
Traditional industrial monitoring technologies such as PLC, SCADA and DCS are designed to monitor and control machinery and processes. However, they were not built to monitor workers themselves or provide a complete view of operational risks.
IOT technologies are helping to close this gap by connecting people, equipment and environmental conditions into a single integrated safety ecosystem.
One of the most important capabilities is the real-time monitoring of workers. Across large industrial sites, operators may not always know the precise location or condition of employees, particularly in hazardous areas.
IOT-enabled wearable devices and sensors can provide real-time location tracking, safety monitoring and faster response times. Sensors integrated into hard hats, for example, can detect falls, identify “man-down” situations and monitor environmental exposure levels. Workers can also trigger emergency alerts using panic buttons, enabling rapid response when incidents occur.
“In an emergency such as a gas leak, operators may have only minutes to locate workers and ensure their safety,” explains Daffarn. “Real-time visibility can make the difference between life and death.”
Another major benefit of IOT is predictive maintenance. Traditionally, industrial equipment has been maintained according to fixed schedules, with repairs often taking place only after failures occur. This reactive approach has a very high cost, can cause unexpected downtime and introduce safety risks.
IOT sensors continuously monitor equipment and performance and can detect early warning signs of faults or structural issues. Maintenance teams can then address potential problems before failures occur, reducing both safety risks, operational disruptions and cost.
Environmental monitoring is another critical component. Conditions such as methane leaks or toxic gas build-ups have traditionally been monitored through periodic checks or isolated sensors.
IOT platforms can continuously analyse environmental data and trigger immediate alerts when dangerous thresholds are reached. Smart personnel safety devices can alert staff of danger, wherever they are. This enables operators to take rapid action, including evacuations or system shutdowns, before conditions become life-threatening.
“In high-risk environments, IOT effectively acts as a lifeguard for workers,” says Daffarn.
A single view of safety
The full value of IOT emerges when these different solution components and data are integrated into a single platform. A comprehensive IOT ecosystem can combine worker location data, equipment performance insights and environmental monitoring to create a real-time, 360-degree safety view.
Platforms that provide a “single pane of glass” allow organisations to gather information from multiple sensors and systems, apply analytics and generate automated alerts when risks emerge, allowing integration of a single source into ERP and other systems.
With smarter monitoring, faster response times and better operational visibility, IOT technologies are helping mining, oil and gas and safety-critical companies move closer to the industry’s long-standing goal of zero harm.
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