MetraWeather Lightning Proximity Alerting
Lightning is one of the most dangerous and frequently encountered weather hazards in Australia. There are deaths and over 100 severe injuries caused by lightning in Australia year-on-year. Lightning can severely harm or take the lives of workers and has the potential to disrupt operations through damage to communications and plant infrastructure, fire and ignition risks, and downtime on sites until the lightning threat has passed. In Australia, the Pacific and South East Asia, MetraWeather partners with Florida, USA headquartered TOA Systems Inc., the pre-eminent manufacturer of integrated lightning networks and warning systems. Over the past 10 years, TOA Systems has installed more than 600 lightning location sensors in over 50 countries. It owns and operates the Australian Global Positioning and Tracking Systems Pty. Ltd (GPATS) network incorporating over 100 sensors.
Description
MetraWeather uses the data derived from GPATS in its lightning proximity dashboards.
- Real-time lightning observations
- Forecast lightning zones expected over the following hour
- Enhanced near-real-time rain radar
- Accumulated hourly and 24-hourly rainfall
- Current imagery from the Himawari-8 satellite
- Visual site-specific lightning proximity alerts
In conjunction with the dashboards, MetraWeather also provides customers with email and SmartAlerts to a nominated directory of employees advising of lightning proximity to specified site latitudes, longitudes within a radius of 10 kilometres.
These alerts form the basis of a cease work instruction and site evacuations to predetermined ‘safe’ sites. The same communication channels also advise employees when the lightning threat has passed and it is safe to return to work.
Showcase – Rio Tinto Yarwun
Rio Tinto Yarwun is a world-class alumina refinery situated north-west of Gladstone in central Queensland. Commitment to the safety of employees and contractors and protection of the environment are integral to the values of Rio Tinto’s operations. The accuracy of observations of lightning strikes and the trust placed in the detection network and communications channels mean that Rio Tinto Yarwun has not only been able to successfully safeguard its workforce, but also to reduce stand-down time from an average of 4 hours to an average of just 20 minutes.
Brochure
About MetraWeather Asia
MetraWeather is a specialist private weather guidance company with a strong footprint in South East Asia. The company is backed by the meteorological expertise of parent company MetService, a National Meteorological Service certified to provide public safety and aviation weather guidance.
About TOA Systems
TOA Systems is a preeminent manufacturer of integrated lightning detection and warning systems. TOA has now installed over 600 lightning location sensors in more than 50 countries. TOA sister company GPATS operates the Australian National Lightning Network used by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology. MetraWeather is an accredited GPATS reseller.
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Contact Us
Learn more about our High Precision Lightning Detection and Warning Alert System.
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| Service Features | |
|---|---|
| Dashboard - real-time observations | Real-time lightning observations |
| Dashboard - forecast zones | Forecast lightning zones expected over the following hour |
| Dashboard - rain radar | Enhanced near-real-time rain radar |
| Dashboard - rainfall accumulation | Accumulated hourly and 24-hourly rainfall |
| Dashboard - satellite imagery | Current imagery from the Himawari-8 satellite |
| Dashboard - proximity alerts | Visual site-specific lightning proximity alerts |
| Email and SmartAlerts | Alerts sent to a nominated directory of employees advising of lightning proximity to specified site latitudes and longitudes |
| Cease work / All Clear messaging | Alerts form the basis of cease work instructions and site evacuations; same channels advise when threat has passed and it is safe to return to work |
| Customisable messaging | Customisable messaging informs workers what action to take when an alert is issued |
| Coverage and Accuracy | |
| Proximity radius | 10 kilometres radius around specified site coordinates |
| Detection network | World leading Global Lightning Network operated with TOA Systems / GPATS |
| Cloud-to-ground detection rate | More than 98% of cloud-to-ground lightning strikes detected (AccuWeather Lightning Network partnership) |
| Positional accuracy | 300 metres positional accuracy |
| Regional coverage | Australia, New Zealand, Oceania and Asia |
| Australian network | GPATS network incorporating over 100 sensors |
| Alert Delivery Channels | |
| SMS | Lightning alerts via SMS |
| Lightning alerts via email | |
| Web-based applications | Browser-based proximity dashboards |
| Onsite hardware | Lights and sirens for site-wide notification |
| Use Cases | |
| Mining | Particularly important for blast teams handling dangerous explosives |
| Aviation | Halting ground operations and refueling |
| Construction | Outdoor field crew safety |
| Energy | Utility and field operations safety |
| Marine | Maritime operations |
| Insurance / H&S reporting | Historical lightning data supports insurance claims, health and safety reporting and property damage investigations |
| Case Study - Rio Tinto Yarwun | |
| Site | World-class alumina refinery north-west of Gladstone, central Queensland |
| Stand-down time reduction | Reduced from an average of 4 hours to an average of just 20 minutes |
| Outcome | Successfully safeguarded workforce while minimising production downtime |
