Blackline’s G7x aids rescue on a blizzarding backroad in British Columbia

FORT ST. JOHN, BC, Jan. 21, 2019 /PRNewswire/ – Rob Nikoleychuk, working with Nalco Champion, was driving from Lower Burnt River to Hasler in blizzard conditions with -10^oC weather while performing work for an energy producer when suddenly the fuses in his truck blew. Nalco Champion is a division of ECOLAB, the global leader in water, hygiene and energy technologies and services.

Out of cellular range and alone on a mountainous back road in plummeting temperatures, Nikoleychuk reached for his self-powered Blackline Safety (TSXV:BLN) G7x wearable device. As a comprehensive lone worker safety monitoring system, G7x has an Iridium satellite uplink to Blackline’s 24/7 live monitoring team. At 13:12 MST, Nikoleychuk used his G7x two-way messaging to send an alert to Blackline, requesting assistance.

Blackline’s Safety Operations team received Nikoleychuk’s alert message. Within five minutes Nikoleychuk’s supervisor, Ben Hopkins, messaged Nikoleychuk’s G7x that help was on the way and dispatched a team of two employees to begin the long drive into the field. Fifty minutes later, Nikoleychuk was safely picked up by a co-worker, bringing him and his vehicle to safety in Chetwynd, a town located between Fort St. John and Prince George in northern B.C.

“I’m a true believer in Blackline Safety,” says Nikoleychuk, District Representative for Nalco Champion in British Columbia, “I don’t know if I would have made it…the Blackline G7x was a life-saver for me knowing that someone was coming, so I didn’t have to trudge 10 km in a blizzard.”

Ben Hopkins, Nalco Champion Area Manager in Ft. St. John, B.C., says, “I went online and could see where Rob Nikoleychuk was on the Blackline Safety portal…he was working in an area with no two-way radio coverage or cell service, and I knew it would be dark soon in the heavy snowfall.”

Nalco Champion originally chose Blackline Safety to improve the safety of employees who are working alone in Canada. This involves many employees in B.C., Alberta and Saskatchewan. Previous use of SPOT devices or cell phones were limited in their reporting ability and the dangers with using cell phones in vehicles while driving made the investment in safety an easy choice. Today all remote Nalco Champion employees have G7x units in their trucks.

“Automation is a key reason we use the product and the added ability to detect a problem if an employee is incapacitated improves our ability to help our people who need to work alone,” says Hopkins. “We found the Blackline Safety bridge invaluable… if Rob didn’t have help coming, it might have been 3 hours before a crew would be sent out — I knew my employee was safe and he knew he had help coming — that was a big relief and our leaders in the safety department, they see this incident as kudos to Blackline Safety.”

About Nalco Champion: We are an Ecolab company. We overcome energy challenges, enabling and enhancing your productivity, while reducing operating costs, in every part of the upstream, midstream and downstream oil and gas value chain. With unparalleled global reach, we provide leading technology, essential expertise and an uncompromising commitment to health, safety and the environment in everything we do, everywhere you need us. https://en-ca.ecolab.com/nalco-champion/

About Blackline Safety: Blackline Safety is a global connected safety technology leader. Providing comprehensive live-monitoring and wireless gas detection, we help teams working in hazardous environments respond to emergencies in real-time and manage efficient evacuations, accounting for everyone’s safety along the way. With millions invested in technology research and development, Blackline Safety is recognized for quality and innovation. Our talented team of designers and engineers create and manufacture in-house — from wearable technology and personal gas detectors to cloud-hosted infrastructure and web-based interfaces for global industry. We deliver the world’s first turn-key, work-anywhere, connected safety monitoring solution with gas detection, 3G wireless, satellite communications, two-way speakerphone, push-to-talk, employee messaging and live monitoring to meet the demanding safety challenges and increase productivity of organizations in over 100 countries. For more information, visit www.BlacklineSafety.com.

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SOURCE Blackline Safety Corp.