Ways to Reduce Accidents and Injuries and How to Create a Conducive Drilling Environment Offshore
In the modern world, where humans will go the extra mile to overcome any physical barriers to access any real or imagined valuable resources, experts have developed heavy machinery for equally heavy-duty tasks. One such task is the drilling of oil, whether on land or offshore. When you are working with heavy machinery, your life may depend on it in case of a human error or a mechanical malfunction. Therefore you are supposed to understand your occupational drilling hazards and mitigate them accordingly.
How to Keep Safe While Drilling Offshore
1. Protect the Machines
When working with heavy machinery, the machines will take care of you as you take care of them. When working offshore and a machine breaks down, it may be catastrophic, and it can even cause death. Therefore, it is necessary to take care of the machines through personnel training and proper maintenance of the machines, including protection from electrical surges to reduce accidents. For training on the hydrohammer and other machine training, you can enroll at IHC IQIP to acquire professional skillsin drilling machines operations.
2. Ensure There’s Minimal Noise
Excess noise can significantly interfere with the life of humans as well as that of animals negatively. Noise pollution in the sea interferes with the natural process of marine life. Sea animals that use echo-locators are not able to function correctly due to the excessive drilling noise. It’s, therefore, crucial to use Noise mitigation technology and strategies to reduce the negative impact of the excess noise usually produced by the drilling machines.
3. Ensure Enough Lighting And Proper Use of Safety Signs
When working in a well-lit environment, you are likely to avoid hitting objects which may cause serious injuries. The use of safety signs also provides a warningabout a high-risk area such as high voltage areas. When warning signs are well placed, people tend to be cautious, thus reducing accidents and injuries.
4. Avoiding Wet and Slippery Conditions
When working in a rig offshore, the working environment is likely to be wet and slippery due to oil spillages and damp weather conditions. These conditions are likely to cause dangerous falls within the active area. It’s, therefore, crucial to keep the working environment dry and free from slippery spillage like oil.
5. Adequate Provision Of repair Tool Boxes
In a drilling rig, repairs and maintenance of pieces of equipment and machinery are frequent. Hence, providing enough toolboxes reduces the movements made bythe staff in search of the toolboxes, thus reducing the chances of accidents and injuries. Placing enough toolboxes at strategic points also saves time, which the crew would use running up and down looking for the tools.
6. Emergency Preparedness And Response
Occupational Safety AndHealth Administration, OSHA, of US, requires all drilling work environments to have safety standards and emergency response plans. The plan should include keeping the working environment free from any recognizable health hazards, training, escape and rescue procedures. OSHA tends to keep the workers safe.
Conclusion
Hazards are never limited, they are always in abundance, but we can avoid them by operating within the set standard procedures and taking all the necessary safety measures. Also, you must ensure that you are using a well-maintained machine to avoid unnecessary breakdowns and health hazards. Be safe; your safety is your responsibility!
