Utility uses automated mobile alert service to monitor staff in the
field
AWG, the parent company of Anglian Water, is using a mobile alert
service to improve the safety of its lone workers.
With as many as 2,500 workers regularly visiting remote locations,
AWG decided to look for a product that provided a "reasonable level
of protection for every lone worker". It chose Lookout Call from
C3, a fully automated incident detection and response system based
on O2 mobile phones and interactive voice response technology.
Lookout Call gives those who feel vulnerable a reliable means of
letting relevant people know where they are as they go about their
daily tasks and in the event of an emergency allows them to quickly
and easily raise the alarm.
The lone worker's mobile phone number is logged into a database of
workers' names managed by C3. When the employee starts a job they
speed dial the service to let them know the location and duration
of the job.
This information is already preprogrammed in the system, enabling
the worker to press just one key for each piece of information.
They can then request the service to call them after a certain
period of time.
If the worker fails to respond after receiving three text messages
from the call service, C3 will automatically phone the worker's
manager at AWG to alert them to the potential problem. The system
can also be programmed so that emergency services receive the
alert.
Richard Luke, telecoms manager at AWG, said, "We have a huge
problem with people's perceptions of risk - most lone workers
presume they are not taking any risks, but in the water industry
there is a huge risk of falling down wells.
"The system has proved to be a perfect solution, both in terms of
ease of use and cost. We are particularly impressed by the fact
that we can use our existing handsets without modification to
access the system."
The C3 mobile alert service has been adopted by other public sector
organisations, including Darlington Primary Care Trust, West
Suffolk Primary Care Trust and East London and City Mental Health
Trust.
Explaining the benefits to NHS workers, John Wood, sales and
marketing manager at C3, said, "Employers are recognising that the
threat of violence and abuse against community workers can have a
detrimental effect on the way lone workers do their jobs."