Mobile plant incident report template

Writing up a mobile plant

Mobile plant incidents involve a machine, a person and a gap between them. The gap is the story: the mirror that doesn’t cover it, the spotter who stepped away, the aisle with no separation. A good template asks about the gap up front.

Fields to capture

These fields help an investigator rebuild what the operator could see and where everyone stood.

• Plant type, ID and registration, and the attachment fitted
• Operator, and whether they were licensed or ticketed for the machine
• Route and travel direction, with a sketch or photo of the area
• People nearby and their distance from the machine
• Visibility from the seat: mirrors, cameras, load height and lighting
• Speed, load carried and surface condition
• Spotter or traffic control in place, and where they stood

What a good record looks like

A strong report has a sketch of the area with the machine’s path and each person’s position marked. It records what the operator could see, which is not the same as what was there. It notes the machine’s condition after the event, since defects turn up later.

Where reports go wrong

Reports often blame the operator and stop. They miss the layout, the pedestrian path and the visibility, which were set up long before the shift. A near miss with a forklift goes unreported because nobody was hurt, and the same aisle is hit again.

Serious injuries and the regulator

Where plant strikes or crushes someone, or nearly does, the notifiable incidents page explains which events reach the regulator. It links to each state’s number. If you’re unsure, ring the regulator rather than guess.

Where Haznote fits

Haznote lets the operator, a witness or the supervisor record the event by voice with a photo and a location. A manager confirms the category and priority. It doesn’t read plant data or telematics. The report holds what people saw and when.