How Emerging Technologies Are Transforming Workplace Safety
AI and Risk Assessment – does it work?
Published in Health & Safety Review, November 2025
Featuring: Wayne Beck, Managing Director of iProtectU
By: Margaret Kirby, Irish Health and Safety Review
The Future of Risk Assessment in the Digital Age
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and advanced software are redefining how organisations manage health and safety. During Ibec’s recent Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) seminar in Kildare, industry leaders explored how AI tools can enhance trust in the risk assessment process and make the lives of safety professionals easier.
Wayne Beck, Managing Director of iProtectU, highlighted the urgent need for smarter, integrated risk management. He noted that while 76% of workplaces across the EU conduct regular risk assessments, only 43% use digital technologies to support the process.
“This means many organisations are still relying on static methods such as Word and Excel,” Wayne explained. “Risk assessments should be dynamic – continuous, adaptable, and integrated with other safety systems such as training, audits, and incident reporting.”
Integration Is Key
Wayne emphasised that the biggest challenge today isn’t awareness but integration.
“The gap is integration, not awareness,” he told the audience.
Traditional risk assessments, stored across multiple systems or on paper, quickly become outdated. In contrast, an integrated solution like iProtectU provides a single-point tool that manages live risk registers, incidents, audits, actions, and performance indicators in real time.
He illustrated this with an example:
A company conducting a travel risk assessment for employees abroad can integrate live data feeds for security updates, weather alerts, and staff location tracking, ensuring safety information is current and instantly shareable – something static systems can’t achieve.
AI in Action
Echoing Wayne’s vision, Ed Harnett of Habitus Health shared how AI is transforming manual handling risk assessments. Using AI-powered video analysis, their system identifies hidden risks in real time and provides instant corrective feedback to workers.
From the Ibec Academy, Elaine Bowers and Darrell Fernandes demonstrated practical AI applications for policy development, training frameworks, and even exam preparation for educators. Tools like Copilot were cited as examples that streamline drafting and planning tasks.
Despite the promise of AI, the speakers agreed that human oversight remains essential.
“The human judgement element is essential,” Elaine and Darrell concluded.
The Takeaway
AI and software platforms such as iProtectU are not replacing professionals – they are empowering them. By integrating technology into everyday health and safety workflows, organisations can enhance accuracy, efficiency, and accountability.
With the right blend of innovation and human insight, the future of risk assessment looks both smarter and safer.
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📰 Published in Health & Safety Review, November 2025
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