Crowe Horwath launches safety app for NZ

An app to help farmers and business owners navigate health and safety laws has been launched in Invercargill, New Zealand. Source: Stuff NZ

Crowe Horwath lined the company carpark with tractors to launch Safely.nz, a safety management app customised for farms and agricultural businesses.

The Safely app can be used worldwide, but is tailored to New Zealand’s health and safety laws.

The app would allow farmers to carry out checks on their equipment without the need for hard copies of documents.

Crowe Horwath managing principal Neil McAra said the app would provide farmers with a new tool to manage health and safety.

Safely was about developing a product that used technology to help farmers, Mr McAra said.

The technology could help the user become more efficient, he said.

“It’s about how we can support our farmers going forward.” New health and safety laws did not have to be an obstacle for farmers,” Mr McAra said.

“Offering this product gives them the tool set to be able to do that … if they can get something at their fingertips which gives them all the requirements in there, it’s one less piece of the puzzle that they have to work about.”

Safely plans are customised to support every role on farm, including rural contracts and share milkers and can also be used by transport providers, vets and shearing contractors.

The app allows contractors to have a profile, so farmers can select a contractor and see all their information, and notify farmers when a contractor arrived on or left their property.

The app is pre-loaded with New Zealand’s industry-specific guidelines for hazards and training. It allows farmers to track contractors activity on the job, manage company records, create meetings, and set alerts to inspect vehicles, plant and machinery.