Health and safety: The domain that innovation forgot until now

We are witnesses to an era of innovation in almost every sector possible. The last two decades have presented various technological discoveries that were never thought of before. From the safety of our homes to the luxury of 24x7 connectivity, everything has been fueled by technological advancement. Complex algorithms, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have been catalytic in ensuring that businesses around the world have the chance to improve every aspect- including the health and wellness of employees.

While this is a topic that has not encountered any major technological breakthroughs in the recent past, the need for higher safety protocols for employees is a must because workers are exposed to varying levels of risk each day, across a gamut of sectors. For many industries, risk is a big part of what employees sign up for. On-job calamities have increased over time and so have the potential risks that employees face. Not only do these cause significant loss in employee morale, but in extreme cases, also cause indelible impact on families.

The dire need to pay attention to employee safety

According to Statista, Over 130 individuals in the age group of 30 to 45 years died due to industrial accidents in 2018. Furthermore, industrial accident deaths of five children below 14 years of age was recorded across the country that year. Since May 2020, there have been 30 industrial accidents in India, killing at least 75 workers, according to IndustriALL, a global union of workers. From 2014 to 2017, 8,004 such incidents occurred in Indian workplaces killing 6,368 employees. These numbers paint a clear picture of the attitude surrounding employee safety and welfare in India.

While Industrial and commercial sites are far too complex to be monitored manually, Radio-frequency identification (RFID) and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) have been used aggressively to accelerate the process of ensuring employee safety. Radio frequency technology, or RFID, helps to track movement of employees and oversee workplace safety and mitigate possible risks. RFID makes use of radio frequency incorporated tags/badges employees, such that real-time monitoring is facilitated through RFID sensor fitted doorways and portals. This technology helps to identify movement, precise locations and also keep a database of identified personnel. In the event of an emergency, RFID can track locations of workers in real-time and help in successful evacuations.

Further, BLE is also a step in the direction of making workplaces safer for employees. The use case of BLE largely depends on the type of industry or workplace. It comprises both, the hardware as well as software aspects that simplify the process of gathering data with regards to real-time locations, movements, and other significant parameters that can further help to make preventive plans for any mishaps.

The role of AI in bringing a change  

Thankfully, AI has revolutionized the way we look at safety protocols and compliances of employees. The need to amplify safety procedures was highlighted with the widespread novel coronavirus instilling caution as well as mental roadblocks in people. Despite the national and international travel bans and lockdowns imposed to contain the virus, there remained a class of workers in “essential services” who continued working. Thus, arose a need to ensure their safety isn’t jeopardised. Innovation in artificial intelligence and IoT has produced a number of technologies that can make workplaces healthier and safer through social distance detection, PPE detection and thermal imaging. AI enabled computer vision camera which can be integrated with existing CCTV systems came to the rescue, proved to be immensely popular and useful. This technology helps to monitor PPE usage and appropriate social distances among other things, all in real-time.

It is not always feasible to train individuals, but external factors can be controlled before they turn into mishaps. Apart from physical security, AI and IoT also helps in predictive analysis of hazardous situations, faulty machinery and other factors that may endanger safety of workers at a pace that is much faster than a manual process. Wearables like hand-bands, badges or other gears fitted with relevant technologies are also becoming increasingly popular because they do not disrupt the course of regular work. Another advantage of wearable technology is its ability to raise an alarm through public announcement systems or personal mobile phones of concerned authorities in case of sudden movements, injuries or events.  The ability of IoT to collect data extensively combined with AI’s real-time analyzing can open up new avenues in the field of occupational safety and health.

The world is going the ‘digital’ way to recuperate from the consequences of COVID-19. Going ahead, technologies that can remotely monitor workplaces and also make use of ML technnologies to alert the relevant systems before an event occurs, are also being put in place. Digitization the safety of organizations will only lead to better results and improved work environment. AI holds the way into the future that will trace the path of workplace and occupational safety.  

The article is authored by Kunal Kislay, Co-Founder, Integration Wizards Solution, IRIS tech