The Top Safety Blind Spots on Today’s Drilling Sites

Drilling sites in 2025 are larger, faster, and more complex than ever before. Whether offshore or onshore, the modern rigs are powered by high-speed operations, high-risk environments, and high-stakes decisions.

While technology has significantly advanced, one thing remains a persistent threat in rig safety: safety blind spots—those unseen dangers in “Red Zones” that traditional monitoring systems often fail to catch.

In this blog, we’ll explore the hidden safety gaps in today’s drilling rigs, discuss the challenges in monitoring these zones, and walk through how technologies – especially AI video analytics – are entering into the red zones to keep AI’s watchful eye on drilling rigs.

A “Red Zone” on a drilling site refers to any area where workers are exposed to elevated levels of risk—like being struck by swinging loads, caught in rotating machinery, or exposed to hazardous emissions.

These zones are marked for restricted access and are often governed by specific safety protocols. Yet, despite clear signage and traditional controls like manual spotters or proximity alarms, accidents still happen—because not all dangers are visible in real time or from all angles.

Drilling operations today aren’t what they were a decade ago. Speed and scale have increased, and the human workforce is expected to work in closer proximity to powerful, automated equipment. Here’s how this evolution is impacting safety monitoring:

• Fluctuating site conditions: Today, in the rigs, equipment moves fast, terrain shifts occur, and frontline workers are constantly repositioned. Hence, a red zone defined in the morning by the EHS leader may not be accurate by afternoon.

• High noise environments: A complex, high-risk working environment, such as a drilling site, often compromises on-site communication. With simultaneous operations taking place,  it gets harder to alert workers who accidentally enter hazardous areas.

• Complex multi-team workflows: Contractors, subcontractors, and vendors may all be present, often with different levels of safety training and awareness. To bring them into a standardized practice of safety makes the situation further complicated.

These factors combine to make traditional systems like static danger signs, clipboards, or lone proximity sensors inadequate for real-time red zone control.

Today’s drilling sites are busier and more complex than ever. With advanced machinery, overlapping operations, and a need for speed, several safety hazards go unnoticed, even with the best intentions. These “blind spots” often hide in plain sight and can become catastrophic if not proactively managed.

Here’s a deep dive into the most frequently overlooked hazards on modern drilling rigs:

Modern rigs are a symphony of moving parts—from rotating top drives to swinging cranes. However, dynamic red zones, which shift constantly based on equipment motion, are often unmarked or temporarily flagged. Manual tracking or outdated layout diagrams can’t keep pace with real-time changes.

Despite digitization, many rigs still rely on outdated or fragmented PTW systems. Some common issues include:

• Delays in permit approvals, especially in fast-paced or multi-contractor environments.

• Paper-based or hybrid systems that aren’t accessible in real-time.

• Incomplete scope definitions, where certain tasks or zones aren’t fully mapped out in the permit.

This leads to unauthorized or uncoordinated tasks happening within designated rig floor red zones, without the required supervision, safety checks, or hazard control.

One of the most deceptive safety gaps is the danger of multiple tasks or lifts occurring in adjacent or overlapping areas. While one lift might be clearly marked and monitored, another concurrent operation may be taking place just meters away, without proper zoning or communication.

In high-noise environments with poor line-of-sight, a worker focused on one lift could be completely unaware of another suspended load moving behind or above them, especially in cases of tandem or simultaneous rigging operations.

The drilling rigs’ red zones are marked around massive equipment like draw works, mud pumps, shakers, and top drives—all of which come with substantial blind spots. Even with trained spotters and human lookouts, there are pockets where visibility is either partially blocked or completely obstructed.

These areas often become congregation points for tools or workers, especially during maintenance or checks, making them hotspots for crush or strike incidents. Without real-time alerts or computer vision-based drilling rig overlays, such blind spots remain virtually invisible to traditional monitoring systems.

Night-time drilling operations are essential to maintaining 24/7 production cycles. But reduced visibility combined with worker fatigue creates a perfect storm for safety lapses.

Reflective gear and flashlights help, but often aren’t enough in areas with shadows, fog, or poor lighting design. Fatigue reduces alertness and slows down reaction times, making it harder for workers to perceive zone boundaries or fast-moving equipment.

This problem is magnified during low-light tasks like night rig-ups, emergency shutdowns, or maintenance under time pressure.

Even with the most trained eyes, human attention has limits. Long shifts, high heat, stress, and mental overload cause concentration to dip, especially in remote offshore or desert rigs.

Spotters or supervisors tasked with monitoring rig red zones can’t maintain 100% vigilance across all angles, at all times. A momentary lapse or a distracted glance can allow an unauthorized entry into a hazardous area, leading to injuries or near-misses that could have been avoided.

Red zone safety in modern drilling sites goes far beyond drawing lines on the ground or hanging caution tape. With high-pressure timelines, rotating shifts, and multi-contractor operations, the key lies in building adaptive, tech-powered environments that evolve with the work.

Here’s how EHS leaders can rethink strategies with AI for today’s complex rigs:

Rather than relying on static layouts, many teams are turning to adaptable digital site maps that reflect the changing nature of operations. These systems help visualize high-risk zones in real-time, especially around active cranes or moving rigs, reducing guesswork during critical tasks.

Fragmented communication is often at the root of incidents. Ensuring that internal crews, subcontractors, and supervisors are on the same page—with standardized signals, alerts, and terminology—goes a long way in minimizing confusion during fast-paced shifts.

Paper-based permits can introduce delays, gaps in accountability, or outdated information. Digital PTW systems, when thoughtfully implemented, streamline approvals and give all team members access to the most current work permissions, reducing overlap and unauthorized entries in restricted areas.

When a high-risk zone is compromised—intentionally or unintentionally—timely intervention is critical. Advanced monitoring setups now offer real-time alerts to supervisors, even in low-visibility conditions. This ensures that action can be taken quickly, without waiting for someone to notice manually.

As drilling sites evolve, so must our safety strategies. Relying solely on outdated red zone control maps or periodic patrols is no longer enough. The future of rig safety lies in constant visibility, proactive alerting, and adaptive learning—all made possible with advanced digital tools.

Every stakeholder—from ground-level workers to top EHS executives—needs to understand these safety blind spots in drilling sites and demand smarter solutions, not just more rules.

A red zone is a high-risk area on a rig where activities like lifting, drilling, or machinery operation pose serious hazards. Unauthorized presence is strictly restricted.

No. AI acts as a support system to enhance human oversight in drilling rig safety and not replace it. It helps supervisors by automatically detecting non-compliances, allowing them to focus on critical decision-making instead of constantly monitoring screens.

Not at all. Many AI-based red zone systems, like viAct’s, are designed to integrate with existing CCTV infrastructure, which means there’s no need for expensive overhauls. Once installed, the AI continuously learns from the site environment, flagging unauthorized entry, unsafe worker positioning, or dropped-object risks.

For example, an oil rig in the UAE deployed AI for red zone detection in under a week and started receiving real-time alerts for worker movement near the crown block area, reducing potential exposure by 70% within the first month. It’s more about smart integration than full-blown transformation.

The Real-time alerts are generated in the form of both light and sound alerts, like mobile pop-ups, sirens, buzzers, wearable alerts (vibration), and dashboard notifications for control room operators. Alerts are prioritized by severity—e.g., an entry without PPE gets a lower-level alert than a worker under suspended load.

• AI-enabled PTW systems ensure that only authorized personnel with valid permits can enter red zones.

• Integration with video analytics ensures automatic cross-verification of permits, PPE compliance, and task-specific restrictions.

• Helps prevent unauthorized or premature entry during critical operations like lifting, hot work.

• Digital PTWs also maintain real-time records, allowing faster incident investigations and reducing paperwork delays.

Do your drilling sites have the same blind spots or more?