The second IntelliPERMIT Indaba was held from 21 to 22 August 2024 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Perth. The purpose of the event was to bring our regional customers and partners together as a network of experts to share their experiences and best practices in industrial safety. Another goal was to gather feedback that would help direct the way forward with the IntelliPERMIT software.
Event Highlights
Over the two days, delegates were treated to a range of presentations by customers, technology partners and IntelliPERMIT consultants. There were plenty of opportunities for delegates to network during the sessions, and at the dinner. The feedback after the event has been overwhelmingly positive and we will be actively looking to increase the number of opportunities like this where the IntelliPERMIT community can engage going forward.
Expert Presentations
The Indaba was opened by Scott Bredin who welcomed the delegates and set the expectations for the 2 days. Scott’s keynote posed questions about the failure of control of work systems in the operating environment, illustrating that the failure to follow procedures was the dominant organisational factor leading to fatalities. Scott concluded that human’s taught perception and actual behaviour can differ when making critical safety decisions, and that understanding these factors will be critical when implementing digital systems for control of work.
Ben Matthews followed up with the risk management dilemma, and how risk management, compliance and point of work risk assessment tools all need to fit into a holistic safe system of work. The system as a whole needs to adapt when something is not correctly executed or completed.
Aaron Anderson then delivered his presentation that took a close look at the way people first deny, resist, explore and then finally accept any change. This is particularly relevant in software system implementations, where the human behavioural aspects are so critical. Aaron continued with examples of using IsoBuilder isolation management system for designing and controlling complex isolation schemes from P&ID’s.
Doug Besters presentation showed how the power of data visualisation can have a significant impact on the way people work. The Sentient software demonstrated by Doug provides powerful and immersive virtual environments to deliver solutions including Digital Twins, blended Training packages, VR Training and other safety communication solutions.
Scott Bredin led an interesting exercise about managing project scope. Using the “marshmallow challenge”, each team were encouraged to build a spaghetti structure that held up a marshmallow as high as possible. The lessons from this challenge illustrated the importance of understanding your core requirements, early prototyping and testing before committing. Scott used this to illustrate how the principles of WSJF (weighted shortest job first) are used to determine priorities in software development.
The team from Mayo Hardware delivered a very interesting presentation about their SafeSite Program, which promotes best safety practices in the Australian industry. Mayo has been providing best-in-class isolation systems for 30 years and is actively working with the IntelliPERMIT team to provide future-proof isolation programs that take advantage of emerging digital technologies. The various techniques for isolation verification including RFID and barcoding were covered together with advantages and disadvantages. The importance of proper PPE specifically for hand protection was also discussed and some interesting innovations in this regard were presented.
Wade Hamel presented on cutting-edge innovations in health and safety, focusing on strategies to minimise risks and enhance workplace safety. His session emphasised the reduction of human errors through effective safety protocols and highlighted the critical role of project change management in ensuring smooth transitions during system upgrades. Wade shared real-world examples of IntelliPERMIT software integration, showcasing how daily reports, weekly meetings, and user group chats were successfully implemented to streamline system maintenance and drive continuous improvements on site. He concluded by discussing key learnings from a recent shutdown, offering insights that will shape future IntelliPERMIT version enhancements.
Nicola Redelinghuys’s presentation covered a very important aspect when implementing a digital safety system like IntelliPERMIT – the human element and the importance of proper change management during a project. Effective change management requires a strategic approach that ensures that a project is adequately resourced for change management, that the impact on users is properly considered and always related to the value proposition (the “why”) of the project through all project phases. There is a compelling business case for project investment in change management that sees many of the benefits only realised after go live.
Richard Ramsay opened day 2 with a presentation on innovations in PTW solutions that was very well received. Richard used examples from industry that illustrated how a failure to plan is a plan to fail. Richard illustrated how the permit-to-work procedure fundamentally ensures that all work is adequately planned. Often the PTW process goes wrong and Richard showed how practical issues in a typical plant can lead to procedures being bypassed or ignored, with severe consequences. Richard concluded with recommendations how improved management of the scope of work can improve overall effectiveness. This is particularly applicable to the planning of isolation and de-isolation before work starts.
Finally, Henry Boshoff led a discussion about the IntelliPERMIT roadmap and the way forward. Customer features remain a high development priority, with work also going into mobile development, risk assessment, user experience enhancements, platform improvements and localisation to support multi-language and time-zone functionalities.
Participants were given the opportunity to interact throughout the Indaba, facilitated by several Q&A sessions and facilitated discussions.
To view all of the event photos, please visit our Facebook page.
Looking Ahead
We appreciate the time of all the speakers and delegates to attend the Indaba and share their experiences. Your active involvement and contributions will help others to achieve excellence in safety and ultimately to save lives. The IntelliPERMIT product team will take the feedback into future product releases and we look forward to increasing the frequency of our events going forward.
Remember that if you attended, you can access the presentations and more information at our Indaba portal at https://www.intellipermit.com/indaba/portal/. If you have forgotten the password, please reach out to our support team via [email protected].
If you are interested in participating in future events as a delegate, partner or speaker, please let us know. You can easily contact us through the website. One way to stay informed is to connect with us on our LinkedIn page at https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/intellipermit/
