The chocolate makers Nestlé at their packaging and ingredients site in York are using a key management product to manage health and safety compliance.
The warehousing and logistics centre where Traka key cabinets have been installed are being used to manage access to forklifts and other material handling equipment, as well as restricting access to sensitive areas. The confectionary company’s Traka software has been programmed to revoke access to keys based on up-to-date licenses and health surveillance.
To operate equipment at the site, operators must have up to date licenses as well as periodic health checks that they are medically safe and qualified. The firm had been managing the compliance, but wanted an automated system, leaving little to no room for human error.
The Traka software is able to monitor when user’s licenses and health surveillances expire. The expiration date will be logged and will cause keys to be locked off from the user. This means that even if an operator had made an honest mistake and had forgotten their own expiration dates they wouldn’t be able extract a key from the cabinet. The software also enables the operations team to note when users are due to upgrade, helping everybody to keep compliant with the HSE regulations. Because of this functionality, Traka won the “2014 Safety, Health & Environment award at Nestle York”.
The key management is also helping the site become more efficient, as keys for essential equipment like forklift trucks are crucial to the smooth running of the logistics centre. Misplaced keys not only may cause health and safety issues, they also incur downtime. The key management product creates accountability, so management know who had the key last. This means that staff are much more likely to return the key on time.
At the Nestlé site in York there are also sensitive areas that house equipment and mains power; that only trained staff should enter. To guard against human error or misuse, the key cabinets ensure only authorised personnel can access those keys, and those areas.
Rob Endley, Area Safety Advisor for Nestlé, said: “We have always taken our HSE compliance requirements seriously, and have previously been vigilant about making sure our operator’s were up to date with the safety standards. However, the Traka system has allowed us to make compliance a seamless part of every day life. If you don’t comply, you can’t access the equipment. It’s simple and effective, and gives us all peace of mind that our operators are safe and we are complying with the health and safety standards that we are dedicated to upholding.”
Steve Bumphrey from Traka said: “What is great about this project is how Nestlé are utilising the software to its full potential. Traka software can be programmed in a large variety of ways that suit the individual site, according to the challenges they face. The Traka system is not just about hardware and providing a hierarchy of access rights, it can provide as much or as little as the company requires. Nestlé has taken its commitment to ensuring the very best health and safety standards and has made it an intrinsic part of how the Traka system works for them.”
