Construction is among the most dangerous industries for workers, and consequently, special care needs to be taken to keep those workers safe. Fortunately, the increasing utilization of IoT devices in the industry has had a positive effect on the safety and wellbeing of construction workers, and innovations in IoT health and safety are only growing.
Through wearable safety devices that can directly monitor each individual worker to sitewide project management, the construction site is a safer place to be thanks to IoT. Let’s breakdown the different ways in which IoT technology is being uniquely applied in the construction industry to address safety concerns and create a safe workplace for all involved.
Wearables
Hard hats, boots, and even glasses can all be outfitted with IoT technology to protect employees from the various hazards present on-site. This includes more than just the monitoring of environmental factors; the internal well-being of each individual employee is also accounted for.
Smartwatches can monitor heart rate and various vitals while other devices can even record an electrocardiogram to look for respiratory distress, abnormal heartrates, and blood oxygen levels. Location trackers and hands-free communication devices outfitted to work apparel ensure that emergency response times aren’t hindered by blind spots. Smart hard hats and glasses also protect operators by using proximity sensors to prevent collisions or alert crews of hazardous materials.
Remote Operations
Remote operations facilitated by IoT technology improve worker safety by removing them from hazardous work environments and from the presence of malfunctioning equipment. Using mobile apps which allow operators to remotely pilot heavy machinery removes workers from the cockpit and protects them from danger, should an incident occur.
Augmented Reality
Construction workers can also benefit from augmented reality (AR) apps which allow them to use a mobile device to deliver helpful AR overlays. For instance, a user could scan a piece of machinery’s safety protocols to retrieve up-to-date information on industry requirements. Knowing immediately whether or your equipment is up to standards is the kind of knowledge that improves safety for everyone on the team. Now, users can even utilize AR overlays of equipment control panels which help them virtually understand its functionality before operating physically.
Site Monitoring
Transitioning from the micro-management of individual operators to the macro-management of an entire site is easy with IoT monitoring technology. Managers can remotely monitor the well-being and whereabouts of each employee while highlighting hazardous areas and alerting those on the ground to hazards via geolocation. With geolocation, locating equipment and receiving repair alerts helps managers provide maintenance before malfunction occurs.
Scheduling preventative maintenance like this is streamlined by project management software enabled by IoT sensors fitted throughout the worksite. Having a single dashboard to remotely monitor the site from can help managers feel confident about the standardization of safety protocols and the insurances that these protocols are followed.
These safety protocols enabled by IoT solutions are customized according to the construction industry, however, IoT safety solutions can – and should – be applied in settings across all industries. All kinds of businesses can benefit from IoT and its ability to increase safety, efficiency, management, and sustainability. To learn more about IoT and how it can benefit your industry, please contact us at Evolution Data.
