Connected technology and workplace safety
Connectivity
Proactive safety equipment may be the next major step to be taken in the area of occupational safety as technological advancements change the way the sector works.
Contractormag recently reported on the changes that are taking place in occupational safety and that are likely to bring a new set of affordable, proactive, intelligent devices to the market. It is expected that new technologies will soon be able to integrate into protective gear. An important step forward for the growing construction sector, expected to be a USD 15 trillion industry by 2025.
Examples include hard hats that respond to impacts by sending distress calls, respirator devices that can automatically select a specific type of filter for a given working environment, and in the area of audiology, hearing protection that facilitates worksite communication through automatic adjustments.
The article mentions a forecast by Pushstart Creative on the subject of connected technology in the workplace. For hearing protection, the focus is on adaptive hearing protectors that are able to add contextual awareness of the user’s surroundings to the device’s performance. Hearing protectors could use noise-cancelling technology with an assisted cloud-connected app to identify and mitigate noises commonly associated with a specific work environment (construction, machine shop, woodwork, etc.). Importantly, the devices would allow speech to remain perceptible and would continue to learn about the user’s workplace and refine its settings over time.
Source: Contractormag; Pushstart
