Development of a System Dynamic Model for Sawmill Safety System

Abstract

Sawmill activities are characterized with different degrees of injuries and accidents due to indecorous handling of sawmill machineries, lack of necessary accident prevention facilities, skill, poor safety culture and practices. However, to guarantee safety in this kind of environment, it is highly imperative that the industry adopt and implement a range of effective occupational health and safety management measures in an efficient way that will lead to more favorable and safe environment for all stakeholders. The safety of stakeholders and facilities however necessitated this work. Two major sawmills were considered in two main towns or cities in each of the six southwestern states of Nigeria, namely: Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Oyo States, which formed part of the major wood producing rain forest areas in Nigeria. Some of the accidents causing activities identified were: human, deficiency in maintenance, environmental and Lack of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) among others. Sawmill safety activities were classified as training, (PPE), safety awareness creation, accident investigation, motivation/incentives, machine/tools procurement and security/safety enforcement. Sixteen safety strategies were developed using combinatorial method with training, PPE and motivation/incentives as compulsory activities. System dynamics software (Vensim7.2) was then used to delineate the causal and flow diagrams. A system dynamic model was developed as valuable leading tool for effective safety planning and management in sawmill industry.