In today’s fast-paced work environments, identifying and addressing occupational hazards quickly and effectively is more important than ever. Yet, traditional methods of hazard detection, such as manual inspections and audits, are time-consuming, inefficient, and often prone to delays. Companies can spend weeks—or even months—waiting for audit reports, only to face further delays as findings are operationalized and tasks assigned. This reliance on outdated processes slows down hazard resolution, increases costs, and creates unnecessary risks.
Enter artificial intelligence (AI), a game-changer that is reshaping how Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) professionals approach workplace safety. AI-powered tools streamline safety processes by providing immediate insights, automating repetitive tasks, and empowering teams to focus on higher-value work. This transformation is driving the adaptation of technologies like AI-powered image recognition, which is already making workplaces smarter, safer, and more efficient.
What Is AI-Powered Image Recognition?
At it’s core, AI-powered image recognition uses algorithms to analyze and interpret visual data from photos or videos. In the context of EHS, this means training AI systems to identify specific hazards—such as wet floors, blocked emergency exits, or unstable structures—within seconds. For example, an employee could take a photo of a workplace and upload it to an AI tool, which then highlights potential risks and generates actionable recommendations in real-time.
This goes far beyond the capabilities of traditional audits. AI doesn’t just detect hazards; it turns insights into immediate action, helping companies resolve safety issues faster and more effectively than ever before.
Why AI Is Essential: Key Benefits for Customers
The most important aspect of AI in EHS is how it adds value beyond traditional methods. Specifically, this includes:
Turning Insights into Immediate Action:
Traditional audits involve significant delays, as companies wait for findings to be compiled, reviewed, and operationalized. This process often takes weeks or months, during which critical safety issues may remain unresolved.
Our AI-powered tool eliminates this inefficiency. Instead of waiting for an audit report, companies can identify hazards in real-time, receive prioritized action items, and assign tasks directly through integrated project management systems. Teams can track progress instantly, reducing human bottlenecks and ensuring accountability. This streamlined process bridges the gap between identifying problems and solving them, ultimately saving time and improving safety outcomes.
Continuous, Scalable Monitoring:
Unlike audits, which provide static snapshots of workplace safety, our AI tool offers continuous, real-time monitoring that adapts to changing environments. For dynamic workplaces like construction sites or warehouses, this means hazards can be detected and addressed as they emerge, rather than waiting for periodic inspections. Scalable monitoring ensures that safety gaps don’t go unnoticed, giving organizations peace of mind and a stronger foundation for proactive risk management.
Proactive Prevention and ROI:
Our AI tool doesn’t just address existing hazards—it helps prevent future ones. By analyzing patterns and trends, AI can predict where risks are likely to occur and recommend preemptive measures to avoid them. This proactive approach minimizes workplace incidents, reduces downtime, and helps organizations avoid costly compliance penalties. Our AI tool not only improves safety but also protects the bottom line.
Freeing Up Teams to Focus on Higher-Value Work:
By automating repetitive tasks like hazard detection, basic risk assessments, and reporting, our AI tool enables EHS teams to focus on more strategic, high-impact initiatives. Instead of spending time logging hazards or following up on corrective actions, professionals can innovate processes, tackle complex safety challenges, and align their efforts with organizational goals. This shift enhances team productivity, morale, and overall impact, creating a smarter, more effective workforce.
Real-World Applications of AI in EHS
Here are some practical examples of how AI-powered tools can be applied in real-world scenarios:
- Identifying Hazards: A photo of a worksite can reveal risks like obstructed walkways, spills, or unstable structures that might not be immediately obvious to the human eye.
- Creating Digital Hazard Logs: Our AI tool can generate and update hazard logs automatically, ensuring all risks are tracked and documented in real-time.
- Compliance Monitoring: Our AI tool can flag non-compliance issues and suggest improvements, helping companies maintain certifications like ISO 45001.
- Training Material Development: AI-generated insights can be used to create custom training materials, tailored to specific workplace hazards.
For example, tools like Microsoft Azure Computer Vision and Google Vision AI are already helping organizations leverage AI to improve safety practices. By integrating these tools with their workflows, companies can take a proactive, data-driven approach to hazard management.
A simple example of hazard detection by AI:
Step 1: Upload a picture into ChatGPT
- Fall Hazard: The most immediate risk is the large gap in the floor. This could lead to a significant fall hazard for workers who might step into or near this area, particularly if not marked or barricaded.
- Structural Instability: The level of corrosion and damage visible suggests that the structure is compromised. The integrity of the remaining parts of the floor and surrounding walls could be weakened, presenting risks of collapse or further degradation while workers are present.
- Sharp Edges: The jagged edges of the broken concrete and corroded metal could cause lacerations or other injuries if not properly handled or if workers inadvertently come into contact with them.
- Exposure to Hazardous Materials: Corrosion and the breakdown of materials often lead to the release of hazardous dust, debris, or chemicals (e.g., lead, asbestos, or other industrial materials), posing health risks, especially if proper protective equipment (PPE) like respirators are not used.
- Debris and Trip Hazards: The rubble and broken concrete pieces visible around the gap pose trip hazards. This debris could also cause injury if not cleared or properly managed.
- Lack of Guardrails or Safety Barriers: There are no visible safety barriers around the exposed edges, which could prevent accidental falls into the gap. This is a critical safety concern, especially in environments with elevated work surfaces.
- Inadequate Lighting: Though not explicitly clear from the photo, the visible areas suggest that lighting could be inadequate, especially given the presence of hazards. Poor lighting can exacerbate the risk of accidents in such environments.
Step 4: Improve your preventive actions
Although inadequate lighting seems to be a strange result, the picture was taken in daylight. However, the question arises: What about at night? The lack of safety barriers is similar. What happens when the construction site is abandoned? Is this a safe way to enter the site in case of an emergency?
- Hazard Identification: The AI detects a fall hazard due to a large gap in the floor, structural instability from corroded materials, trip hazards from debris, and inadequate safety barriers.
- Risk Prioritization and Recommendations: Based on the severity of risks, the AI immediately prioritizes the fall hazard and suggests corrective actions, such as installing temporary guardrails, clearing debris, and performing structural repairs.
- Task Assignment: The AI automatically assigns these actions to relevant team members in a project management system, such as notifying the maintenance team to install barriers and scheduling a follow-up inspection.
- Proactive Prevention: By analyzing recurring trends—such as deteriorated floors in multiple locations—the AI flags this as a systemic issue and suggests scheduling regular inspections or implementing preventative maintenance protocols.
- Compliance Reporting: The tool logs all identified hazards, assigned tasks, and their resolutions into a compliance dashboard, ensuring the site remains audit-ready without manual data entry.
The Future of EHS: From Hazard Detection to Strategic Safety
The power of AI in EHS goes far beyond basic hazard detection. Shortly, AI tools will seamlessly integrate with IoT devices, conduct advanced risk assessments, and even provide real-time guidance during emergencies. Companies that adopt these technologies today will be better positioned to meet the evolving demands of workplace safety, compliance, and sustainability.
At SASM, we specialize in bringing the future to you. Our AI-powered applications streamline processes, automate hazard detection, and simplify compliance, so your team can focus on what truly matters. Ready to transform your EHS strategy? Contact us at ai@sasm.be to learn more.