TRIESTE – Invisible barriers in operational areas to improve safety in the port environment. This is the Safety 4.0 project, which proposes a new solution for occupational safety at the port of Trieste.
In recent weeks, the port area hosted the project’s experimental activities, aimed at testing an innovative prototype. Developed with the involvement of experts and researchers from INAIL’s Department for Technological Innovation and Safety of Plants, Products and Human Settlements (DIT) and Rome’s Tor Vergata University, the prototype uses immaterial barriers to separate areas dedicated to specific activities, preventing interference between machines and people and between machines and hazardous zones such as quay edges. The operational phases focused on the context of cruise operations at Molo Bersaglieri, with the aim of validating advanced technological solutions to protect workers.
The initiative is part of the programme of one of the three lines of action set out in the implementing agreement between the Eastern Adriatic Sea Port System Authority, the Giuliano Isontina University Health Authority and INAIL Friuli Venezia Giulia, with the collaboration of the central structures of the DIT and the Institute’s Department of Medicine, Epidemiology, Occupational and Environmental Hygiene. This follows up on the protocol signed with the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport and the Italian Ports Association on 12 April 2023.
The “invisible barriers” project follows a training and drill initiative held in early November, also aimed at port workers operating in confined spaces—high-risk environments that require specific technical skills and maximum attention to safety. The programme consisted of 12 hours of training and drills: 8 hours of classroom theory and 4 hours of technical, hands-on field training using INAIL’s confined-space simulator, a cutting-edge tool—both for training and applied research—designed to recreate real operational scenarios. These activities were hosted at Punto Franco Nuovo, a complex and strategic working environment where health and safety protection and the continuous upskilling of operators are absolute priorities.
