6 ways to automate the opening safety check

#1 - Simple checklist

Who it's for: Single-site venues where the manager opens up and wants the paper safety checklist on a phone.

What it is: An opening safety check confirms the site is safe before you let customers and staff in. This version is the tick-list of 10 checks, a pass/fail result, and a notes field. It covers equipment working, no overnight hazards (leaks, pests, damage), exits clear, lighting and fire points in order, and that nothing flagged at the last close was left undone.

In practice: A single-site cafe runs the safety check at open. The duty manager walks it, confirms the equipment fired up safely and no overnight leak appeared, marks pass or fail, notes a flickering light to report, and the open is logged before doors.

Why it works: The list lives on the canvas, so the safety side of opening doesn't get lost in the rush to set up. The notes field flags anything that needs sorting before customers arrive.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (10 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field

#2 - With guidance

Who it's for: Venues where opening is delegated to whoever is on the rota.

What it is: The simple checklist plus a guidance note at the top, explaining what makes a site genuinely safe to open: equipment working as it should, no overnight hazards, escape routes clear, and crucially, anything flagged at the last close has been dealt with.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. What makes a site safe to open is spelled out
2. The link to the previous close is made explicit
3. The check is consistent whoever opens

Why it works: The guidance sits with the checklist, so a new opener treats it as a real safety check, not a formality before unlocking.

Steps included:

• 1 guidance note (what makes a site safe to open)
• 1 checklist (10 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field

#3 - With a signature

Who it's for: Venues where the opening check needs a name against it. Single sites where different people open, and multi-site groups where head office wants to know who confirmed each site.

What it is: The simple checklist plus a signature captured at sign-off. The manager or opener signs to confirm the site was safe to open. The signature names who did the check and when they signed it.

In practice: A venue with a rotating open. Whoever opens works the 10-check list, marks pass or fail, and signs. The next day if a hazard is found, the opener knows exactly who to ask about it.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A signature naming who did the opening check, captured at sign-off
2. A record of when the check was signed, next to what was ticked
3. Accountability without asking anyone to take a photo

Why it works: The name goes on the record at the moment the work finishes, not from memory later. When something is found unsafe the next morning, the conversation starts with who confirmed the open, which is specific instead of general.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (10 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 signature (sign-off)

#4 - With photo evidence

Who it's for: Venues that want visual proof the opening check was completed, not just ticked later.

What it is: The simple checklist plus a close photo of the fire exit and access door, captured at opening to show they are clear and unlocked. It's proof the check happened before doors, and a record of the site's state at the start of the day.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A photo of the fire exit, captured at the time
2. Proof the check happened before doors, not after
3. A visual record of a critical safety point kept alongside the checklist

Why it works: An opening tick is easy to complete once the place is busy. A photo timestamps the check to the actual open. A fire exit is a single, clear thing to photograph and to check.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (10 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 photo of the fire exit

#5 - With Poppi checking the photo

Who it's for: Venues where opening photos get taken but nobody looks at them. Multi-site groups where head office can't review every site's opening every morning.

What it is: A photo-checked opening is the simple checklist plus a photo of the fire exit that Poppi (AI) reviews the moment it's saved. Poppi answers one question about that photo, set by you: is the fire exit clear and the access door unlocked? A single named spot is something an AI can actually judge, where a wide shot of the whole site is not. If the answer is no, Poppi posts what it spotted to the team chat, so it gets sorted before anyone moves on.

In practice: A three-site hospitality group opens at 8am. The duty manager photographs the fire exit as always. Poppi reads the photo: clear, door unlocked, no obstacles. Verdict yes, and nothing changes. On a rushed Tuesday morning the photo shows a trolley parked in front of the exit. Poppi answers no and posts the reason to the team chat ("The fire exit has a trolley in front of it blocking access"). The manager moves it while staff wait, then retakes the photo.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A photo of the fire exit that gets checked the moment it's saved, not just stored
2. A team chat message with Poppi's reason the moment a photo fails the check
3. The manager stops being the only person who ever looks at opening photos

Why it works: The check happens in the seconds between the photo being taken and the doors opening. That's the only moment the problem is still cheap to fix. A manager reviewing photos later can only record that the exit was blocked; Poppi catching it at 8am gets it fixed before service begins.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (10 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 photo of the fire exit
• 1 Poppi decision (judges the photo against your question)
• 1 Poppi action (posts to the team chat if the photo fails the check)

#6 - With a team alert when the open is due to start

Who it's for: Venues with a fixed opening time that has to be hit. Shopping centres, leisure venues, multi-site retail groups, and any site where a late start to the safety check means a queue or missed service start.

What it is: A team alert on the open is the simple checklist plus a Poppi (AI) action set to the workflow's start time. When the opening is due to begin, Poppi posts a message in the Pilla team chat so whoever is opening starts the safety check straight away. It fires on the start time, not on a completed step, so the nudge lands even if nobody has opened the checklist yet.

In practice: A 6-site shopping centre needs all sites to be confirmed safe and open by 9am for customer traffic. On a busy morning it's easy for a duty manager to slip and start the check at 8:55, leaving no buffer if a hazard is found. With this version, at 8:45 the team chat gets a message that the opening check is due, so the duty manager sees it on their phone and the checks begin on time rather than 10 minutes before doors.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A message in the team chat the moment the opening is due to start
2. A nudge that lands even when nobody has opened the checklist yet
3. A record of when the check should have begun, next to when it was started
4. One less thing for the manager to chase by message every morning

Why it works: The alert is tied to the start time itself, not to someone remembering to open the canvas. It turns "did anyone start the opening check?" from a thing the manager has to check into a thing that checks itself.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (10 safety checks)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 Poppi action (posts to the team chat when the opening is due to start)

How to pick the right version

You don't need to know our product to choose. Every version here is the simple checklist plus one addition, so pick the additions your venue actually needs.

Do other people open the site, or just you?

If you open yourself and know the safety steps, the plain list is enough. The moment rota staff open, the guidance needs to be on the screen: #2.

Does the opening check need a name against it?

If the record speaks for itself, skip this one. If you want who signed off each opening on the record, whether for single sites where different people open or multi-site groups where an auditor wants accountability, #3 adds a signature.

Do you need photo proof?

A ticked checklist says the check was done; a photo shows the site was actually safe. If you want visual proof, #4 adds a close photo of the fire exit at the moment of opening.

Does anyone actually look at the opening photos?

If a manager genuinely reviews every photo, #4's record is enough. If photos get taken and filed unseen, #5 has Poppi (AI) check each one as it's saved and tell the team chat when something's wrong.

Does your opening have to start at a set time, and does it sometimes slip?

The first five versions are all about how the opening check is done. This one is about whether it gets started at all. If your opening has a fixed start time and a late start means a queue or missed service, #6 posts a message to the team chat the moment the check is due to begin. If timing looks after itself, the earlier versions are enough.

Need more than one addition? Open the version with the addition that matters most in the playground and add the others as steps. That's how the product works anyway: every option here is one step added to the same list.

Related workflows

• Closing safety check - the end-of-day counterpart to this open
• Workplace safety walk - the wider hazard walk
• Fire exit check - keeping escape routes clear at open

Conclusion

The opening is a rush, and the safety side is the easiest part to skip. A recorded opening check makes sure the site is confirmed safe before doors, and gives you a record if anything goes wrong. Every version above is the same simple checklist plus one addition: guidance, a signature, a photo, an AI check on the photo, or a deadline alert. Pick the ones your venue needs and combine them in the playground.

More additions are coming in future refreshes, like pulling every site's opens into one report. Those need more review time and will land separately.

→ Build your own opening safety check on Pilla.

===SQLDATA=== PHOTO_INSTRUCTION: A close photo of the fire exit and access door, showing they are clear and the door is unlocked. JUDGE_QUESTION: Is the fire exit clear and the access door unlocked? ALERT_MESSAGE: Opening safety check is now due to start. ===END===