This year’s Farm Safety Week (24th -28th July) will bring together key figures and organisations from the industry to promote one key message – farm safety is a lifestyle, not a slogan.
A recent HSE report estimated that farming accounts for 15-20% of all worker fatalities with the annual injury rate 18 times higher than the national industry average, including construction!
With such a poor safety record, what can farmers do to keep themselves and their workers safe?
With farming in the blood of one of PCE’s board members, we understand the challenges faced by farmers. We advise that using two-way portable radios would be a step in the right direction to solving their communication hurdles, some of which include:
Tractor to tractor/worker to worker communication Farmers want to stay in touch with their workers and their families without wasting time moving from one field or farm building to another.
Poor or non-existent mobile reception Farms tend to be located on challenging terrain – more suited to sheep, cows and crops than mobile phone masts! Farmers want to clear communication, whatever the weather and wherever they are.
Hands-free conversations Farmers want to be able to hold conversations without having to stop working.
Privacy Farmers would rather other farms, taxi firms, etc. could not hear their conversations.
Lone worker health & safety Farmers want the reassurance that if they or one of their workers suffers an injury, they will be able to call for help, or that their lack of response will trigger an alert.
There is a full range of two-way portable radio solutions for farms that can solve all, or some of these problems. An experienced, quality radio solutions provider, like PCE, will give farmers professional advice for free, so they can make an informed choice of the options available.
The advice would be based on a survey of your farmland and an understanding of your farm’s needs. Every farm is different so there isn’t a one product or price fits all solution.
Let’s face facts, two-way radios won’t always prevent accidents but they will offer family and fellow farm workers piece of mind when out on the farm estate. Raising an alert and summoning help in an emergency could prevent a bad situation getting worse!
Contact our team on 01392 445040 or info@pce-uk.com
Read more about our two-way radio solutions > http://pce-uk.com/business-radios/