Safety in the workplace is one of the biggest challenges that Spanish companies face today. According to data from the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy, 796 workers lost their lives in workplace accidents in 2024, which represents an increase of 10.4% compared to 2023 and the second highest number recorded in the country.
During the same period, there were 628,300 workplace accidents resulting in sick leave, with the construction, industry and services sectors being the most affected.
In this context, the company Axis Communications highlights the transformative role that intelligent surveillance technology can play in incident prevention, promoting a new preventive surveillance model for complex work environments.
Beyond traditional supervision
Today, advanced video and surveillance systems go far beyond traditional monitoring: they can detect unauthorized entry into restricted or dangerous areas, identify whether workers are wearing necessary personal protective equipment such as hard hats and harnesses, activate fall alarms to protect lone workers in dangerous situations, and flag inappropriate behavior such as speeding or blocking emergency exits – all in real time and with a level of accuracy that manual monitoring simply cannot match.
These capabilities turn surveillance into an active prevention tool, not just observation, reinforcing a culture of continuous surveillance aimed at reducing risks.
“Workers are the foundation of any business. The question is no longer whether technology can help keep them safe, because it clearly can. The real challenge is to help organizations move from a reactive to a proactive mindset, incorporating intelligent surveillance solutions into their safety culture before an incident forces them to do so,” says Guillermo López González, Sales Engineering Team Leader at Axis Communication.
Proactive approach to workplace safety
The industrial sector is part of a particularly vulnerable context. In these environments where critical infrastructure, heavy machinery and high-risk operations converge, a proactive security approach supported by surveillance systems becomes a business necessity:
- Thermal cameras can detect unexpected temperature changes that could indicate a gas leak, expanding early surveillance capabilities.
- AI-based analytics can alert supervisors the moment a worker falls or enters a danger zone, reinforcing intelligent surveillance in real time.
- And networked audio solutions allow direct communication with on-site employees when an evacuation or emergency procedure needs to be implemented, integrating with connected surveillance ecosystems.
Critically, these surveillance solutions can be deployed on open platforms, allowing companies to integrate new capabilities into their existing infrastructure and maximize investments already made without disrupting operations.
Proactive data-driven strategy
What sets intelligent surveillance apart is its ability to turn reactive security management into a proactive, data-driven strategy. By analyzing patterns in real-time video data, organizations can identify recurring risk zones, track compliance trends, and identify behaviors related to specific times of day or operating conditions.
This information allows companies to continually improve their security protocols and raise their preventive surveillance standards. Privacy is also respected: dynamic masking technologies allow video to be processed and blurred directly in the camera, simultaneously protecting the safety of workers and the rights of individuals, a key element in any modern surveillance strategy.
The industrial sector is especially vulnerable as critical infrastructure, heavy machinery and high-risk operations converge.
“Privacy and security should never conflict. With today’s edge-based processing and dynamic masking capabilities, we can protect workers’ personal data as well as their physical integrity. That dual commitment is fundamental to Axis’ approach to workplace security and our vision of responsible surveillance,” concludes López González.
Axis Communications believes that by combining intelligent video analytics, audio systems, access control and wearable devices into a cohesive security ecosystem, supported by interoperable surveillance technologies, organizations take significant steps to protect their people and safeguard long-term business continuity.
