S. Korea's work safety watchdog uses drones to inspect construction sites

By Park Sae-jin Posted : May 4, 2021, 17:28 Updated : May 4, 2021, 17:28

[Courtesy of KOSHA]


SEOUL -- South Korea's work safety watchdog will demonstrate drones to inspect the safety of work environments at construction sites. The drones will monitor sites to see if workers use proper safety gear and safety equipment such as fall-proof nets and guard rails are properly installed to help reduce safety accidents.

The Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (KOSHA) said in a statement on May 4 that it would demonstrate a special drone control tower vehicle equipped with closed-circuit television (CCTV) to monitor 12 construction sites in real-time. Drones will look for safety hazards at hard-to-reach places such as high-rise building summits and factory chimneys. If hazards are found, the watchdog will ask site operators to fix problems immediately.

Drone inspectors will use aerial information to create digital maps that will be used for safety management, KOSHA said. "We will expand the area of on-site monitoring and prevent lethal accidents by managing data that is collected throughout construction processes," KOSHA's future technology research center head Ryu Jang-jin was quoted as saying.

In 2020, workplaces reported 2,062 deaths with 882 losing their lives because of safety accidents, according to KOSHA's data. Two people died every three days from falling. The main reason for lethal falling accidents was the lack of safety equipment such as safety guard rails, fall-proof nets and other devices such as lifeline harnesses.
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