Safety & Health Expo 2008: Fast track to the trainers

Mike Birch | Feature | HSW
01.05.2008

Almost 20% of visitors to the exhibition last year said training was their main area of responsibility, and with the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act rattling boardrooms everywhere, training is likely to be high on the shopping list again this year.

Computer-based training, aka e-learning, is still gaining ground at the exhibition, and several companies better known in other areas are following the market into "virtual" learning.

Scriptographic Publications produces training booklets, and most people know that Posturite sells ergonomically smart office furniture, but both companies are now e-learning providers too. Scriptographic's words and images - which have trained and informed millions of employees over 25 years - are now available in an interactive web-based format at a screen near you, accessed remotely and managed online. The company is also issuing its booklets in a pay-to-view PC format, and all 200 titles will be available this way.

Scriptographic moved into electronic media last year with a system of training that can be initiated by the health and safety or HR manager with an email, and can record and analyse results by individual, group, department or location. The product is called AIM (Assess, Inform and Instruct) and it tests employees' initial understanding of the subject, trains them with an online version of the booklet and then assesses comprehension and retention. This will be the product's first appearance at a major show.

Posturite was formed in 1991 to create and supply office furniture that would make life more comfortable and productive. The company now has four divisions including an office design and supply specialist, an occupational health and first-aid division and a new division that tailors e-learning products to clients' needs or supplies standardised training such as COSHH (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health), fire, induction and DSE (display screen equipment) training.

WorkRite is Posturite's training division and will adapt client training for tasks such as staff induction and incorporate them into existing material to create customised packages. The CoshhRite product, for example, takes students through the requirements of the COSHH regulations and allows them to progress at their own pace.

Media savvy

Known for its booklets, videos and e-learning products, Safety Media will show a new interactive, blended e-learning programme called Safety Learning which is designed to bring high-quality training within reach of all employees. The company's range of training products now includes ones that are multi-lingual, interactive and designed for group training or for offline access. It is also launching a new interactive DVD called Five Steps - Risk Assessment in Your Workplace, intended to drive home the message that everyone in an organisation is responsible for their own risk assessments.

Health, safety and environmental consultancy Sypol has made training and assessment easier to manage with SafetySmart, an integrated modular aid for managing risk assessments, access to emergency response information, training, evaluation and record-keeping. First-time users of SafetySmart are automatically identified by the software and taken through online health and safety induction training tailored to their job description, location and health and safety needs.

When they finish modules, staff are asked to complete simple questionnaires. If this throws up any problems, the software first delivers tips for improvement such as suggestions on how to adjust a workstation, and then completed assessments are submitted electronically to line managers. Poor understanding is flagged to the line manager who can arrange further training, and the system identifies and tracks the progress of these corrective actions and maintains the necessary records.

EssentialSkillz is well established in health and safety training and risk assessment software and counts Rolls-Royce, Heineken, EDF Energy and the European Bank among its customers. The company has released a new version of its O-LAS Online Learning Management and Assessment System, which administers and manages DSE training and risk assessments.

EssentialSkillz's current range of packages includes workstation essentials, stress, manual handling, fire, induction, slips and trips and food hygiene. Modules run between 15 and 35 minutes and can be customised to a client's individual requirements; for example, they can be programmed to issue email reminders which can help push up completion rates.

The exhibition will include many well established training providers. Woodland Grange, RRC Business Training, West Anglia Training Association and Messam & Rider are all Expo regulars returning again this year. Many products are similar, and the exhibition is probably the best opportunity to see them together and compare prices, facilities and styles of training.

The training category in the show guide will list more than 60 suppliers and providers, and their offerings range from specialised employee courses - such as fire safety and first aid - to career development for safety professionals from Nottingham Trent University's portfolio of undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications.

RRC is launching its new NEBOSH Diploma Blended Learning Programme to meet the demands for reduced attendance. This new programme requires only three weeks' attendance at intensive workshops, supported by structured pre- and post-course reading, and will be available in London and the company's new North East and North West centres from the autumn.
RRC says its podcasts have also gone from strength to strength, and their star and writer, Dr David Towlson, will be on the stand (G40), along with a supply of free CD-ROMs of some of the more recent podcasts, including those with guest appearances from the HSE and NEBOSH. The firm will also be running a prize draw over the three days of the exhibition where participants can win one of six iPods.

If you are looking for courses or materials for your training room, your shop floor, your boardroom or for yourself, the Safety & Health Expo is a good place to start.