BY FIONA PASCOE
Staging Connections’ Fiona Pascoe talks about safety – every show, every event, StageSafe.
Remember your first day at school? For most of us it was terrifying. Your first job out of school can be just as daunting. When Dan joined Staging Connections he was your typical wide-eyed Sydney lad – young, nervous, full of promise and busting to get his hands on the gear. So, how do you take a kid from the burbs and turn them into an AV professional. The answer is, very carefully.
Whether it is Dan or Daniela, Staging Connections soon recognised that the sons and daughters of the events industry’s technical delivery are precious. Youthful exuberance without proper training, mentoring and supervision can often lead to risk-taking behaviour .
Dan, like so many young people beginning their journey in this fast moving industry, has been given the necessary training so that ‘StageSafe, every show, every event’ has become his mantra. StageSafe is not just a system, but a way of doing things, an attitude that our people bring to their events. Staging Connections does this not only because we want to give you a brilliant and safe event, but because Dan’s still living at home and his mum’s waiting for him.
It’s because we love our crew and understand the importance of bringing them home safe every night that we have embedded risk management into our brand. In 2012 Staging Connections began implementing its StageSafe system along with its logo and mantra, “StageSafe, every show, every event.” This has become the core of everything we do. Whenever managing director Tony Chamberlain speaks to us, he begins with a message on the importance of safety, not just because he wants to, but because he understands that without safety, your brand is nothing.
StageSafe represents Staging Connections’ unique approach to events risk management. It was developed to ensure that our crews apply consistent safety controls to all of our shows, backed by thorough risk assessment and years of experience in the events industry.
We have developed a series of safe work practices for all tasks performed during event set up, execution and pack down. Along with these, we have launched our 5 Cardinal Rules of Safety. These cover areas like rigging, electrical, heights, drugs and alcohol and PPE.
Another new development in the health, safety and environment area for Staging Connections is the launch of our StageSafe App in February 2013, an industry first. Now our technical directors and crews can access vital safety information such as procedures and standards from their smartphone. By the end of 2013 StageSafe will be a fully certified QA safety management system for the events Industry.
