Efficient and effective management of a fleet of portable gas detectors is hugely important to maintaining the health and safety of employees. There are many factors that can impede this process, making it much more difficult than necessary.
For many safety professionals, it is a big and time-consuming challenge to equip every worker with the correct personal protective device so that workers are prepared to begin the workday. It is not uncommon for safety teams to spend hours overseeing safety programs at different plant locations. This includes writing incident reports, checking in and checking out equipment, and keeping a manual record of use and maintenance.
By leveraging new and advanced technologies, the process of managing a gas detection fleet can be less demanding, safer and more efficient.
Control Over the Fleet
A big challenge for safety managers in managing a fleet of gas detectors is ensuring that the fleet is ready for work. Failing to do so can impact equipment availability, causing unnecessary downtime.
Tracking and maintaining dozens or even hundreds of devices is far from easy. It is imperative to have a simple, time-saving system for tracking and managing all devices. Such a system lets the safety manager and other stakeholders, including workers and supervisors, have the proper expectation about what and when things will happen. Such a system also removes uncertainty and stress by ensuring that gas detection devices are always at the ready.
Unfortunately, pen-and-paper methodologies and even spreadsheets have their limitations, proving less than ideal. However, this is the digital age and as such, new technologies, including cloud connectivity, have made their way into fleet management.
As technology-based solutions advance in capability and rise in popularity, safety professionals will want to know how best to leverage them so they can have more visibility and control over the fleet.
Cloud-Enable Automation
Gas detection software services can help improve efficiencies in all aspects of gas detection management. Safety io, a software subsidiary of MSA Safety Inc., has developed software solutions that help to automate fleet management – with no upfront capital investment. Users only pay for what they need based on device usage.
Designed to work with MSA’s best-in-class gas detectors, the connected MSA Grid Services platform developed by Safety io provides real-time situational awareness to simplify fleet management and assist with improving safety outcomes.
Using technology to automate fleet management can save time for safety managers. It also boosts productivity by providing insight into actions that should be taken, making it possible for safety managers to take a proactive approach in managing the fleet. All in all, this eliminates frustrations and prevents unnecessary downtime.
Since it is a heavy component of compliance, recordkeeping is another important topic in gas detection fleet management. It is, however, a very time-consuming task. The good news for safety managers is that cloud-based connectivity consolidates all the information about the gas detectors in the fleet. Then it places this information into one accessible place, providing a broad overview of gas detector compliance data and, thereby, automating the compliance process.
The MSA Grid Services platform also automatically helps ensure that gas detectors are at the ready. This means they have been bump tested and calibrated with all sensors working as intended. In addition, it provides automated compliance for recordkeeping purposes.
Informed Decision Making
Staying connected can help safety managers achieve their safety goals, extend capabilities and simplify the proactive management of any size fleet of portable gas detection.
Connectivity through a solution like MSA Grid Services can consolidate gas detection-related activities into a single location, allowing safety managers to:
- Monitor gas detectors from anywhere with an internet connection
- Maximize detector uptime
- Have visibility and easily manage alarm activity
- Drive worker accountability
- Access real-time data for tracking trends and identifying potential issues
Connectivity Is a Journey
Safety managers have a great responsibility to maintain and enforce rigorous safety practices.This area is where technology can really make a difference, helping safety managers align or elevate their safety programs. Even so, safety managers can expect the implementation of advanced technologies to take some time.
Applying new knowledge, adjusting processes, and adding connectivity solutions involves change. For some safety managers, the journey to change may have already started; for others, it is only beginning.
Regardless of where the safety manager is on the journey to connectivity, it is important to remember that doing it in the right order can transform the safety program for the better.
On the journey, safety managers may seem to move two steps forward, then make a sidestep. If this is the case, safety managers need only to remind themselves that implementing a connected solution is a process that happens over time. Yet, it is a process that will, ultimately, offer more control over the gas detection fleet.
- Connecting MSA detection equipment to the cloud through MSA Grid Services will enable safety managers to:
- Ensure that every worker who needs it is equipped with a working gas detector
- Manage the full inventory of detectors
- Confirm that when a device is switched on it has not been compromised
- Know when to decommission devices for maintenance
- Assign devices by individual or department
- Investigate exposures
- Track usage and user behavior for training purposes
Cloud Connectivity with the MSA Grid
Whether responsible for 200, 500, or 800+ ALTAIR® gas detectors, the MSA Grid can help safety managers automate and simplify the management of the fleet. When choosing the MSA Grid, safety managers will be guided by safety experts who can help improve efficiencies in the detection program. This, in turn, will provide peace of mind in safeguarding workers and worksites, as well as giving safety managers more time to focus on the overarching goals of the overall safety program.
The many benefits of partnering with MSA for trustworthy gas detection connectivity include:
- Anytime, Anywhere Information: Live monitoring of local and remote sites with a wireless connection
- Alerts: Immediate notifications about the fleet’s status
- Actionable Insights: Data and findings that lead to better decision making
- Reduced Downtime: Proactive readiness of the entire fleet (bump tested, calibrated, working sensors)
- Compliance & Accountability: Assignment, tracking, and equipment use reporting that informs safety processes and workflow
- Ease of Use: Quick deployment and seamless connectivity
- Innovation: Advanced hardware devices and software for a complete solution
- Expertise: 100+ years of safety experience, market presence, and award-winning service and support
We’re committed to creating the best connectivity and software as a service (SaaS) so safety managers can have workers and worksites that are safe and compliant with policies and regulations.
START YOUR CONNECTED JOURNEY WITH SAFETY IO.For more information or to request a demonstration, visit MSA The Safety Company.
