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OSHA Plays Video Games for Safety

In 1983 the science fiction film “War Games” was released. The film is set in America at the height of the Cold War where the threat of nuclear war is a topic of much speculation. The plot surrounds a hacker named David, his access to the supercomputer with artificial intelligence called War Operation Plan Response (WOPR) and a friendly game of “Global Thermonuclear War”. This game among others on WOPR was designed to teach the artificial intelligence strategy and planning. A classic line from this movie is, “Shall we play a game?” which is uttered by WOPR.

Apparently, OSHA is following in these same footsteps. OSHA has released a game. (Note: Unity Player required to play)

Per OSHA:

“OSHA’s Hazard Identification Training Tool is an interactive, online, game-based training tool for small business owners, workers and others interested in learning the core concepts of hazard identification. After using this tool, users will better understand the process to identify hazards in their own workplace.”

The point of the game/tool is to find and name various workplace hazards. The goal is for managers and workers to be proactive in preventing injury and illnesses on while on the job. There are four scenarios including Manufacturing, Construction, OSHA Visual Inspection, and Emergency Room. It is recommended start with OSHA Visual Inspection Training. To keep the game/tool from getting “stale”, OSHA had it designed to alter the scenario each time it is played. This means different hazards will appear each time the scenario is played.

While OSHA intended this for small business owners, perhaps all can benefit from a trip through one of the scenarios.

OSHA Video Game Trailer

One Comment

  • Sandra Miller says:

    I was playing around with this last November when they released it. It is a fun little tool and helped bring attention to areas that are sometimes overlooked. I also liked that it covers multiple work sectors 🙂 As always love how you bring fun to your blogs.