Southey Contracting, with the support of SAPREF Refinery, embarked on an initiative to attempt to enhance health & safety as well as productivity levels by managing the fatigue levels of their scaffold crews. Healthy lifestyle and sports nutrition supplement brand USN and fatigue systems provider Fatigue Sharks were approached in order to create a programme that will assist to achieve this objective.

On March 20, 2013 the “Food-for-Thought” pilot programme was implemented that used Chronobiology, which is the study of the time and its effects on the human body, and sports nutrition to increase alertness.

Although the programme was not designed to increase production in the workplace in the first instance, results did yield positive effects on production and increases of over 30% were achieved during the testing phase. The programme mainly targets the safety and wellbeing of employees during working hours.

“In working towards curbing fatigue, USN and Fatigue Sharks have developed a product, called Fast Grow on the go for labour intensive jobs,” says Fatigue Sharks director Doug Potter.

The energy drink was created by the USN research and development team, which is currently manufactured for the South African market. The product was tested at the SAPREF Refinery in Durban, during the refinery’s pre-shutdown period.

USN designed Creatine- and Vitamin B-based shakes to increase the scaffolding crews’ stamina and muscle growth. Each crew member was issued with the supplement on arrival at about 06:45 in the morning and with a Spike energy drink at lunch at about 11:30.

Johan Nel, a project leader for Southey Contracting, one of the Contracting Companies for SAPREF, further adds: “During the testing period, we monitored production on a daily basis and found a positive difference in production from the second day that the product was used. We have had no complaints from the workforce regarding side effects since they have started using the product.”

“With these positive results, Fatigue Sharks and USN will introduce the fatigue management programme to mining companies,” concludes Potter.