Keeping playgrounds safe
Brisbane City Council (BCC) is responsible for keeping 2,229 playgrounds safe. A playground can become unsafe through wear and tear or vandalism. There are playground inspectors who conduct around 300 playground inspections per month. These inspectors previously used pen and paper to complete their inspection reports which were filed using a paper based system.
BCC wanted a system that would result in the field data being available in electronic format and in one database to allow searching. They also wanted a system that did not require a lot of training and would be easy to use in an outdoor environment.
Although PDA’s and tablets were considered, Destiny digital pens were chosen as they were a cost effective solution. Training requirements were kept to a minimum as the input process was very similar to what the inspectors were used to. The operation procedure is shown below.
Data forms captured by a digital pen are made available in the office within 30 seconds, as shown here:
The data and text is then uploaded into a job management system provided by Destiny.
The screenshot below is from BCC’s internal job management system. This particular screen shows the Condition Rating 4 and 5 jobs, which are those categories rated as urgent.
It is now easier to use the data to monitor programs and align funding to the inspection results. At a glance, all inspection results and rectification works can be displayed. Each region and senior management can view their results and the entire database.
With all the data feeding into one location, it is now possible to generate monthly orders for items such as softfall (mulch, rubber etc), which needs to be regularly replaced under playground equipment. This saves considerable time and allows for bulk purchasing of products making it cheaper and more effective.
“The playground solution was reasonably easy to put into operation,” according to BCC staff. ”We are continuing to work with our playground inspectors to develop the process and gain additional uses such as generating work orders to council contractors for remediation work.”
Overall benefit
Destiny digital pens enable playground inspectors to efficiently collect all of their information, and the Destiny system almost instantly converts this information into data. These business intelligence tools assist Brisbane City Council to effectively manage and keep playgrounds safe.