In March 2015, a 56-year-old line leader at Corsair Engineering Inc. suffered injuries while operating a powered industrial truck to flip over a fabricated metal automotive rack. As the rack was raised, the man backed up, causing the top tray to flip open and hit him in the back. After two weeks of medical care and attention, the worker passed away in April.
While every job poses potential risks, some are more dangerous than others. From industrial engineers on the factory floor to first responders such as firefighters and police officers, extra safety precautions must be taken to reduce the 4,679 workplace fatalities that occurred in 2014. Engineers at Honeywell and Intel teamed up to develop the Honeywell Connected Worker solution, a prototype for a wearable, IoT-enabled device aimed at improving workplace safety and increasing productivity.
Monitoring vital signs
In the midst of an emergency, a few seconds can be the difference between life and death. The Honeywell Connected Worker solution features a system called the Mobile Hub, which collects real-time sensor data on the user’s heart rate, breathing pattern, posture, motion and exposure to toxic gas. The data gathered is then displayed on a remote, cloud-based dashboard, giving plant managers and incident commanders the chance to better anticipate dangerous situations that may threaten the safety of workers.
Perhaps most importantly, the Honeywell Connected Worker solution enables users to produce a “man down” notification on the Mobile Hub dashboard by simply motioning his or her arm in a manner that is recognized by the system. The motion analysis makes it easy to pinpoint injured workers even in the most hazardous environments.
Improving speed and efficiency
By tracking the movement of factory workers and first responders, the same sensors used to protect employees from unexpected risks can also boost productivity. If, for example, a task takes a worker an unusually high number of steps to complete, the movement sensors can offer insight into what caused the loss in productivity. That information can later be used to develop training programs focused on increasing the speed at which workers perform specific tasks.
The Honeywell Connected Worker solution also measures heart rate, which is especially crucial when attempting to maximize the efficiency of employees in the workplace. Keeping a close eye on a worker’s level of exertion throughout the workday enables supervisors to avoid burnout by spacing out particularly exhausting tasks.
From 1994 to 2014, the number of fatal work injuries declined by nearly 30 percent. With the creation of the Connected Worker solution, engineers at Honeywell and Intel have taken a significant step toward dropping that number even lower. Engineers may never be able to prevent each and every workplace fatality, but that cer