Latest news with #Svoboda
Techday NZ
5 days ago
- Business
- Techday NZ
Blackline Safety boosts in-house QA to enhance global reliability
Blackline Safety has confirmed an extensive expansion of its quality assurance programme, aimed at enhancing product testing and reliability for its global market. The company, which operates from its headquarters in Canada and maintains offices in the UK, France, the US, and UAE, manufactures connected safety wearables and gas monitors used by more than 2,200 organisations and protecting over 165,000 workers worldwide. Its technology, focused on live monitoring and real-time data, is designed to support timely response to incidents and safer working conditions across multiple sectors. The expansion involves significant growth of the company's quality assurance team, upgrades to inspection equipment, and increased in-lab testing of its entire product range. According to Blackline, these efforts are being conducted entirely in-house at its manufacturing facility in Calgary, building on the company's historical investment of CAD $2 million in surface mount technology and inspection tools. Blair Svoboda, Director, Quality Assurance at Blackline Safety, described the company's approach to safety technology, stating, "When most people think of safety technology, they think about the moment it matters – a gas leak detected, an SOS alert triggered, or a worker protected – but our team is focused on everything that leads up to that moment because protection starts on the bench, in the lab, and on the line." The firm utilises automated equipment to simulate real-world conditions, rigorously testing product reliability through procedures such as repeated dock insertions and button presses, and exposing devices to water immersion, extreme temperatures, and dust penetration. This testing aims to ensure the units can withstand environmental stressors that could potentially compromise safety-critical operations. Svoboda highlighted the importance of proximity between quality assurance and production, stating, "All of our quality assurance testing is done in true-to-life simulated environments just steps from the manufacturing floor to enable us to react in real time as needed – a process that just can't be achieved when manufacturing is done elsewhere." The company's quality assurance team, which has grown by more than 250% to encompass a global staff of 35 specialists, conducts a rigorous 68-point test on every device before shipment. This comprehensive assessment includes radio, sensor, and alarm function tests, as well as connectivity checks across both cellular and satellite networks to ensure each device meets required operational standards. "Every test and check in our QA process comes down to one simple question: will this device keep someone safe when it counts?" Svoboda emphasized. "At Blackline, quality assurance isn't about ticking boxes – it's about protecting professionals like the lone worker in a remote oilfield, the firefighter charging into danger, or the technician maintaining a power grid in a storm." Blackline Safety reports that its connected devices and solutions have captured over 286 billion data-points and generated more than eight million emergency alerts, reflecting the scale of data and activity supported through its network spanning over 75 countries. The company emphasises that quality assurance extends beyond compliance, supporting its objective to enhance workplace safety and operational performance.
Business Wire
7 days ago
- Business
- Business Wire
Blackline Safety Announces Quality Assurance Program Expansion
CALGARY, Canada--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Blackline Safety Corp. (TSX: BLN), a global leader in connected safety technology, has announced a major expansion of its quality assurance (QA) program. As part of the expansion, the company has increased its QA team, upgraded its inspection equipment, and boosted in-lab testing of its entire product line. 'All of our quality assurance testing is done in true-to-life simulated environments just steps from the manufacturing floor [...] - a process that just can't be achieved when manufacturing is done elsewhere.' - Blair Svoboda, Director, Quality Assurance Share Headquartered in Canada with offices in the UK, France, U.S., and UAE, Blackline manufactures an award-winning line of connected safety wearables and area gas monitors, currently used by more than 2,200 organizations and protecting over 165,000 workers worldwide. Providing live monitoring, automatic incident alerts, and location-based insights, the technology helps teams respond faster, prevent incidents, and make informed decisions through real-time safety data. 'When most people think of safety technology, they think about the moment it matters – a gas leak detected, an SOS alert triggered, or a worker protected – but our team is focused on everything that leads up to that moment because protection starts on the bench, in the lab, and on the line,' said Blair Svoboda, Director, Quality Assurance at Blackline Safety. The expansion of Blackline's QA program – which is conducted entirely in-house at the company's manufacturing facility – builds on its historical investment of CDN $2 million in Surface Mount Technology (SMT) and advanced inspection tools to provide greater oversight and control throughout the entire production process. Automated state-of-the-art equipment tests product reliability (dock insertions, button presses, etc.) and ensures the devices are able to withstand water immersion, extreme temperatures, and dust penetration, which could potentially damage internal components. 'All of our quality assurance testing is done in true-to-life simulated environments just steps from the manufacturing floor to enable us to react in real time as needed – a process that just can't be achieved when manufacturing is done elsewhere,' Svoboda said. He explained that Blackline's global team of 35 quality assurance specialists – which has grown by more than 250% – runs a 68-point quality test on every single safety device before it ships, from testing radios, sensors and alarms, to conducting connectivity checks across cellular and satellite networks. 'Every test and check in our QA process comes down to one simple question: will this device keep someone safe when it counts?' Svoboda emphasized. 'At Blackline, quality assurance isn't about ticking boxes – it's about protecting professionals like the lone worker in a remote oilfield, the firefighter charging into danger, or the technician maintaining a power grid in a storm.' About Blackline Safety: Blackline Safety is a technology leader driving innovation in the industrial workforce through IoT (Internet of Things). With connected safety devices and predictive analytics, Blackline enables companies to drive towards zero safety incidents and improved operational performance. Blackline provides wearable devices, personal and area gas monitoring, cloud-connected software and data analytics to meet demanding safety challenges and enhance overall productivity for organizations with customers in more than 75 countries. Armed with cellular and satellite connectivity, Blackline provides a lifeline to tens of thousands of people, having reported over 286 billion data-points and initiated over eight million emergency alerts. For more information, visit and connect with us on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn and Instagram.
Russia Today
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Moscow was ‘forced' to start military operation against Kiev
Russia was left with no choice but to launch its military operation in Ukraine because of the continued persecution of the people of Donbass by Kiev following the 2014 Western-backed Euromaidan coup, President Vladimir Putin has said. During a meeting with a group of businessmen in the Kremlin on Monday, Putin said that Moscow could not ignore the plight of Russian-speakers in the neighboring country. He reiterated Russia's position that the ongoing conflict stems from the turbulent events in Kiev in early 2014 when initially peaceful protests spiraled into riots and clashes with police, which led to the ouster of democratically elected President Viktor Yanukovich. The anti-Yanukovich forces included ultranationalist groups like Pravy Sektor (Right Sector) and the Svoboda (Freedom) party. 'You need to understand that we weren't the ones who orchestrated the coup in Ukraine,' Putin said. '[The West] has always told us that there should be democracy and elections… but they carried out a coup – a bloody one, in fact – as if it were normal. They later went on to suppress the Donbass, killing people with helicopters and jets.' 'They practically forced us into doing what we're doing today, and now they're trying to blame us for it,' the president said. The coup in Kiev sparked counterprotests and more riots, including a deadly clash in Odessa in May 2014, where 48 people were killed. The largely Russian-speaking regions of Donetsk and Lugansk rejected the Euromaidan and voted for independence from Ukraine. The new government in Kiev responded by sending troops in the spring of 2014 and repeatedly shelling and bombing Donetsk and other Donbass cities. Ukraine later refused to implement the UN-backed 2014-2015 Minsk accords, which would have granted autonomy to Donetsk and Lugansk. EU officials, including former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, acknowledged later that Kiev had used the pause in the fighting to rebuild its army and economy. Ukraine also adopted several laws since 2014 aimed at restricting the use of Russian language in the public sphere. Putin cited Ukraine's failure to respect the Minsk accords and the attacks on the rights of Russian-speakers as 'the root causes' of the conflict, describing Kiev's actions as 'genocide.' He has since demanded that Ukraine drop its plans to join NATO in favor of becoming a permanently neutral state, and recognize Crimea and four other former Ukrainian regions as part of Russia.
The Star
02-05-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Peace in exchange for land? For many Ukrainians, it's too painful to contemplate
FILE PHOTO: Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko greets servicemen of the Svoboda (Freedom) battalion from the elite Storm Brigade "Rubizh" of the National Guard of Ukraine before an award ceremony for fighters, who have recently returned from the frontline in the Bakhmut area of Donetsk region, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv region, Ukraine April 11, 2024. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich/File Photo KYIV (Reuters) - Vitali Klitschko, the former heavyweight boxer who is now mayor of Kyiv, ventured last month into hazardous political territory: he delicately suggested in an interview that Ukraine might need to cede land to end its battle against Russia. After a flood of angry online comments, he walked back his comments, saying on Facebook that "territorial concessions contradict our national interests and we must fight against their implementation until the last". U.S. President Donald Trump and his negotiators believe the only route to ending the Russian war in Ukraine is for Kyiv to acknowledge in some form that it is not getting back the Ukrainian land Moscow's troops have taken since invading. But the episode with Klitschko -- along with opinion polling shared exclusively with Reuters -- indicates that, more than three years into the war, most Ukrainians are not willing to cede territory to Russia in exchange for a ceasefire deal. The state of public opinion helps explain why Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who is expected to run for re-election, has resisted Trump's pressure to cede territory in ceasefire negotiations. A poll from Gradus Research exclusively shared with Reuters showed that almost three-quarters of the population did not see territorial concessions as a way to end the war. "Most respondents believe that Russia's main goal in the war ... is to establish full control over our country," Gradus said in a research note. "Ukrainian territorial concessions are not perceived as a compromise or a guarantee of peace - on the contrary, they can only strengthen the aggressor." Russia has denied seeking control of Ukraine, but its forces headed directly to Kyiv in their full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 before Ukrainian troops pushed them back from the capital to their current positions in the south and east. The Ukrainian poll conducted this week indicated that 40% of respondents believed that even in the case of concessions, peace would be only temporary and unsustainable. Another 31% thought that concessions would not lead to peace at all, Gradus said. Russia now de facto controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory, including the Crimean peninsula that it seized and unilaterally annexed in 2014 as well as large parts of four other regions of east and southeast Ukraine. According to U.S. negotiators, many of Ukraine's European allies, and some Ukrainians when speaking in private, say Ukraine will have to acknowledge loss of territory to end the war. Ukrainians are exhausted and up against a bigger and stronger enemy. Their attempts to push Russia back on the battlefield have failed since the first year of the war, and their Western partners have not given them enough military aid for it to achieve a decisive victory. Zelenskiy has acknowledged that Ukraine cannot regain its territories by military force but notes that formally ceding land would run counter to the country's constitution. Opposition to giving up land has softened as the war has ground on. Data from the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), showed that in March about 39% supported territorial concessions, compared with just 10% in May 2022. Yet it also found that in March 50% of Ukrainians rejected the idea of giving up any land to Russia, ever, down from 51% in December. Data from another pollster - Razumkov Centre -- from a February-March poll showed nearly 82% of respondents were against any formal recognition of the occupied territories. "The definition of territorial concessions that more than half of the population might accept with a heavy heart is a de facto recognition of the occupation without de-jure recognition," said Anton Hrushetskyi from KIIS, adding that the country would have to receive security guarantees in exchange. Apart from Klitschko's short-lived intervention, no prominent figures in Ukrainian politics or public life are trying to promote a national conversation about the need to acknowledge the loss of territory. Evhen Mahda, a political analyst in Kyiv, said a dialogue between the country's leadership and society about giving up land was needed to ensure broad acceptance of a potential deal. "Unfortunately, we have to be realistic," Mahda said, about the terms of a deal to end the war, while noting that many Ukrainians still perceive discussions about a compromise on territory as a betrayal. (Additional reporting by Sergiy Karazy; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
Straits Times
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Peace in exchange for land? For many Ukrainians, it's too painful to contemplate
FILE PHOTO: Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko greets servicemen of the Svoboda (Freedom) battalion from the elite Storm Brigade \"Rubizh\" of the National Guard of Ukraine before an award ceremony for fighters, who have recently returned from the frontline in the Bakhmut area of Donetsk region, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv region, Ukraine April 11, 2024. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich/File Photo Peace in exchange for land? For many Ukrainians, it's too painful to contemplate KYIV - Vitali Klitschko, the former heavyweight boxer who is now mayor of Kyiv, ventured last month into hazardous political territory: he delicately suggested in an interview that Ukraine might need to cede land to end its battle against Russia. After a flood of angry online comments, he walked back his comments, saying on Facebook that "territorial concessions contradict our national interests and we must fight against their implementation until the last". U.S. President Donald Trump and his negotiators believe the only route to ending the Russian war in Ukraine is for Kyiv to acknowledge in some form that it is not getting back the Ukrainian land Moscow's troops have taken since invading. But the episode with Klitschko -- along with opinion polling shared exclusively with Reuters -- indicates that, more than three years into the war, most Ukrainians are not willing to cede territory to Russia in exchange for a ceasefire deal. The state of public opinion helps explain why Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who is expected to run for re-election, has resisted Trump's pressure to cede territory in ceasefire negotiations. A poll from Gradus Research exclusively shared with Reuters showed that almost three-quarters of the population did not see territorial concessions as a way to end the war. "Most respondents believe that Russia's main goal in the war ... is to establish full control over our country," Gradus said in a research note. "Ukrainian territorial concessions are not perceived as a compromise or a guarantee of peace - on the contrary, they can only strengthen the aggressor." Russia has denied seeking control of Ukraine, but its forces headed directly to Kyiv in their full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 before Ukrainian troops pushed them back from the capital to their current positions in the south and east. The Ukrainian poll conducted this week indicated that 40% of respondents believed that even in the case of concessions, peace would be only temporary and unsustainable. Another 31% thought that concessions would not lead to peace at all, Gradus said. Russia now de facto controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory, including the Crimean peninsula that it seized and unilaterally annexed in 2014 as well as large parts of four other regions of east and southeast Ukraine. According to U.S. negotiators, many of Ukraine's European allies, and some Ukrainians when speaking in private, say Ukraine will have to acknowledge loss of territory to end the war. Ukrainians are exhausted and up against a bigger and stronger enemy. Their attempts to push Russia back on the battlefield have failed since the first year of the war, and their Western partners have not given them enough military aid for it to achieve a decisive victory. Zelenskiy has acknowledged that Ukraine cannot regain its territories by military force but notes that formally ceding land would run counter to the country's constitution. Opposition to giving up land has softened as the war has ground on. Data from the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), showed that in March about 39% supported territorial concessions, compared with just 10% in May 2022. Yet it also found that in March 50% of Ukrainians rejected the idea of giving up any land to Russia, ever, down from 51% in December. Data from another pollster - Razumkov Centre -- from a February-March poll showed nearly 82% of respondents were against any formal recognition of the occupied territories. "The definition of territorial concessions that more than half of the population might accept with a heavy heart is a de facto recognition of the occupation without de-jure recognition," said Anton Hrushetskyi from KIIS, adding that the country would have to receive security guarantees in exchange. Apart from Klitschko's short-lived intervention, no prominent figures in Ukrainian politics or public life are trying to promote a national conversation about the need to acknowledge the loss of territory. Evhen Mahda, a political analyst in Kyiv, said a dialogue between the country's leadership and society about giving up land was needed to ensure broad acceptance of a potential deal. "Unfortunately, we have to be realistic," Mahda said, about the terms of a deal to end the war, while noting that many Ukrainians still perceive discussions about a compromise on territory as a betrayal. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
