Collaborative Offshore Safety Briefing Project Reaches Completion
25 January 2012
It’s been just over a year, but, our project to update our helicopter passenger safety briefings reaches its conclusion this month. Last December we hosted a workshop, attended by many of the operators and service companies working within the offshore industry, with a view to exploring ways of improving this product.
A project with our core values at its heart, the workshop’s purpose was to assess and improve our passenger safety briefings used in the UK, which we have been delivering to those travelling offshore since 1987. As a result of two significant accidents in the previous year, various initiatives were being taken to reassure the workforce, and improve safety.
In response to these initiatives we felt we had to re-examine the content and approach of our briefings in order to align with them. The decision to host a workshop, in which we discussed these issues with others in the industry, offered us the opportunity to make changes and reinforce the UK’s reputation as the safest place to work offshore.
Representatives from BP, Petrofac, Total, Survival One, Bond, Bristow and CHC attended the workshop. Discussion ranged from style of delivery to content and two key observations were made:
- Animated graphic content should feature more prominently where clarity of action, such as exit operation, is required.
- The re-breather element of the LAP lifejacket should be featured in the briefing in greater detail.
Those representing the operators looked for clearer visual instruction to be central to the briefing. The incorporation of the re-breather was important as it is a life-saving device, despite its inclusion not being a legal requirement.
The report produced by Viscom was circulated to the attendees and beyond for confirmation of action and elaboration of the points raised. This was then forwarded to the CAA for their response. As a result, the CAA concurred that the recommended changes would be of benefit to passenger understanding, and could be adopted.
We set about implementing the changes, and have tracked requirements throughout the intervening period, as changes were made to operator’s fleets, and survival equipment developed. We are now ready to unveil the updated briefings to passengers flying offshore. We are very proud of the result and look forward to seeing the briefings in use.
Viscom’s Production Manager Richard Holman says, “This revision of our briefings refreshes them, and incorporates new information to ensure that the thousands of people who travel offshore regularly will be kept engaged by the material. We will be closely reviewing how they are received, and fully anticipate positive feedback from all concerned,”
This project has enabled us to do what we do best, applying the latest film technology and animation capabilities to a HSEQ message, thereby improving the safety and wellbeing of those working in the Oil and Gas industry.
A member of the