Development of an Innovative Risk Assessment Protocols For Farm Machinery

Nova Scotia is the world leader in wild blueberry production, with approximately 16 000 hectares of wildblueberries fields. The average production of over 15 million kilograms annually results in a farm value of $25million and a value-added contribution to the provincial economy of over $63 million. Doug Bragg Enterprises(DBE) is a global leader in the production of mechanical lowbush wild blueberry harvesters and the drive forhigher yields and faster processes constantly results in machinery modifications, which require safetyassessment. Equipment safety and safe operating procedures are an important issue for DBE. This projectproposes the development of an innovative risk assessment protocol, which does not currently exist, whichwould be used to assess equipment safety and safe operating procedures associated with such design changes.The protocol would be developed by evaluating the machinery, its operation and user practices to identify riskand subsequent mitigation methods. The proposed outcome will be beneficial to DBE, helping raise theirprofile as manufacturers of quality, safe and efficient harvesters, with potential for increased sales. It isanticipated that the risk assessment protocol developed for DBE will be expanded to create a generic riskassessment protocol providing benefits for Canadian agriculture as it could be applied to (a) any type of farmmachinery and (b) and type of agricultural operation. It is anticipated that this new partnership between Dr.Corscadden and DBE will create both specific and generic solutions, with potential for further collaborativepartnerships. Raising the profile of on-farm safety, the need for self assessment and the ability to undertakethis through a generic protocol will have benefits, not only to the blueberry industry, but for agriculture ingeneral. DBE's commitment to improving safety will result in data and information that will be shared withFarm safety Nova Scotia (FSNS) and will be disseminated to the industry through a range of medium.