Digitalization of Industrial Safety: An Accessible Solution for Small Businesses

Digitalization of Industrial Safety: From Idea to Implementation

The implementation of digital tools in the field of Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) is becoming not just a trend, but a necessity for companies with a distributed structure. Alexander Kononosov, Leading HSE Specialist at Mercator Group, shares practical experience in creating a unified digital environment for industrial safety management based on a corporate portal.

Mercator Group has 22 service centers across Russia, employing over 150 workers. The remoteness of the branches from the central office in Moscow created difficulties in organizing training and providing access to regulatory documentation. The speaker analyzes how the company managed to solve these problems, optimize internal processes, and reduce the workload on personnel.

Stages of Digital Platform Implementation

The digitalization project started at the end of 2023. The presentation details the implementation process, which was divided into three key stages:

• Development of technical specifications. A key stage that required the joint work of the IT department, HR service, and the HSE specialist. The structure of the industrial safety block on the Bitrix24 portal, algorithms for informing new employees, and formats of final documents were determined.
• Determining necessary resources. The existing corporate portal was chosen as the platform. The HSE specialist was responsible for filling the knowledge base (presentations, video lectures, regulations), while the IT specialist handled the technical implementation and smooth operation of the system.
• Justification of efficiency. The project was approved by management thanks to a clear calculation of economic benefits: saving about 100,000 rubles per year by abandoning the services of third-party training centers and reducing the cost of printing handouts. A reduction in labor costs for workers (about 360 man-hours) and the HSE specialist (48 hours) was also predicted.

Organization of Distance Learning and Knowledge Base

The foundation of the digital platform was a document library comprising about 250 legal and local regulatory acts (orders, instructions, waste passports). Service center managers gained round-the-clock access to the necessary documentation.

The training process is organized as follows: upon employment, the worker gets access to a personal account where HSE and electrical safety courses are assigned. After studying the materials (presentations, videos), they take a test. The system automatically generates a knowledge assessment protocol, which is printed, signed by the employee, and sent to the central office for entry into the Ministry of Labor registry.

The speaker emphasizes that the distance format does not replace practical training. The practice of first aid skills and safe methods of working with tools is carried out directly at the workplaces under the supervision of managers.

Employee Involvement: The "Mercator Idea" Project

An interesting addition to the platform was the "Mercator Idea" module, which allows employees to suggest improvements to production processes. In the presentation, Alexander shows by example how this initiative works in practice. Thanks to employee suggestions, the lighting system in the service centers was modernized (switching to LED lights), mobile tables for repairing units were manufactured, and remote medical examinations were organized.

What you will learn from this webinar:

• How to organize distance HSE training based on an existing corporate portal?
• What stages must be passed for the successful implementation of a digital safety management system?
• How to calculate the economic efficiency of an HSE digitalization project?
• How to involve employees in the process of improving working conditions using digital tools?
• How to overcome personnel resistance when implementing new training technologies?