Human Factors in Control Canada Network to Host First Virtual Workshop

Can safety critical industries, like offshore energy, marine transportation, aviation, healthcare and construction, be made safer with AI?

Friday, April 11, 2025 By Madeline Meadus

The Human Factors in Control (HFC) Canada network will explore this question at its second workshop Human Factors and AI: Opportunities and Risks for Safety Critical Industries taking place virtually on May 14.

With increasing integration of artificial intelligence (AI), humans are finding new and differing ways to interact with technologies, human-automation interaction and organizing and managing evolving work systems.

The spring 2025 workshop will address topics including responsible and ethical AI, trust and transparency, and apply cases to multidisciplinary work systems, such as healthcare, aviation, maritime and process industries.

“It’s the best of both worlds, in terms of creating a face-to-face local network and Human Factors community, while creating opportunities for national and international exposure and collaboration as well” said Dr. Steven Mallam, network leader for HFC Canada and Academic Director of Maritime Studies graduate programs in the Marine Institute’s School of Maritime Studies.

The network, which hosted its first event last October, is funded by Energy Research & Innovation Newfoundland and Labrador (ERI) and the Marine Institute. October’s seminar invited academic, governance regulators and industry leaders to come together to share knowledge about organizational safety in high-risk critical industries.

While there is a primary focus on Human Factors in the offshore and maritime sectors, attendees at last fall’s event and this spring’s upcoming event come from a variety of professional backgrounds.

“Concerning safety critical industries, it’s not just an oil and gas or maritime focused project. A lot of these issues are generic across different domains,” said Dr. Mallam.

“We have participants who work in healthcare, the rail sector and the construction industry. It’s important to promote human factors to the local community and show people the diversity in it and value it can create.”

With growing interest in Human Factors nationally and internationally, the network plans to host one in-person and one virtual seminar per year moving forward.

Human Factors at MI

At its core, Human Factors is the research and practice of understanding of interactions among humans and other elements of a system to optimize human well-being and overall system performance. For Dr. Mallam, this involves a focus on people working in maritime environments, with his research program covering a broad range of Human Factors topics related to digitalization, automation and autonomy, simulation-based training and assessment, safety culture and organizational issues related to work systems and user-centred design processes of equipment and work environments.

With increasing need for research in human factors in the maritime sector, it has become a primary area of focus for MI’s School of Maritime Studies and Centre for Marine Simulation.

Researchers in the school have approached Human Factors in many ways. Projects have explored the effects of motion sickness on maritime professionals, offshore safety and survival and the impact of visuals or simulations on student learning.

Further research advancements are being made by graduate students in the Ocean Safety Research Unit and the graduate level maritime studies programs.

“With a strong human factors research presence at MI, we’re excited to create a space for knowledge-sharing and innovation with our local, national and international partners,” said Captain Kristopher Drodge, head of the School of Maritime Studies.

“Bringing together industry and academia is a critical step for ensuring advancement in the field of human factors. It is important for academic, industry and governance professionals to continue to make these connections.”

Registration for the upcoming seminar is now open.

Stay up to date on the HFC Canada network and future events by following them on LinkedIn or on the network webpage. Access to account sign up will be open soon for members to take advantage of benefits and additional events.