Abstract:
Purpose – Studies have proved that wood sawmill workers are exposed to high occupational risks if
not well managed. In developing countries, many wood sawmills are found in urban and semi-urban
areas. Studies exploring how residents near these wood sawmills perceive and react to these risks is
scarce in Nigeria. The application of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) technology is possibly one
of the ways to manage the likely hazards. This study aims to investigate the possible hazards
associated with timber sawmills in residential areas and the role of 4IR technologies in proffering
feasible solutions to mitigate them in Nigeria’s cities.
Design/methodology/approach – Data were sourced from three cities and nine sawmills across
Nigeria. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with authoritative participants (residents,
environmentalists, government agencies, sawmill owners, 4IR technology experts and medical
experts) who have been championing the regulation and safety of timber sawmill locations within the
cities (Lagos, Benin City and Owerri) via a phenomenology type of qualitative research and
supplemented by secondary sources.
Findings – Findings show that timber sawmills are located across the three cities in Nigeria and may have
contributed to the health and environmental challenges of the people living in the neighbourhood. The
identified hazards were grouped into three sub-themes (physical, health and environmental hazards).
Findings identify robots, modularisation, cyber-physical systems, the internet of things and services and
human-computer interaction as the digitalised technology that can be used in sawmills to mitigate hazards for
the benefit of mankind.
Research limitations/implications – The paper is limited to hazards that residents in timber
sawmills locations may face in Nigeria’s cities and data collected via face-to-face 23 interviews. The paper’s referral to past publications in the findings and discussion section compensated for the small
sample size.
Practical implications – As part of this paper’s implications, the emerged recommendations will
strengthen collaboration with relevant stakeholders regarding control measures via the use of 4IR
technologies in timber sawmills. This will stir up policymakers to develop possible policies that will promote
and create the platform for the implementation of 4IR technologies in city sawmills.
Originality/value – Apart from probably being the first paper to explore the hazards of residents in
timber sawmill locations and proffer solutions via the usage of the 4IR technology, this paper’s contribution
emphasis the need for in-depth future studies regarding the risk perceptions of Nigeria’s residents living in
timber sawmill area.
