Wearables firm partners with IBM on safety offerings

A workplace safety wearables technology firm has announced a collaboration with IBM to integrate solutions for smart personal protection equipment.

Guardhat Inc., a Detroit-based industrial safety technology company specialized in developing wearables, infrastructure and software platforms, plans to work with the IBM Watson “internet of things” platform to further modernize safety offerings, the company said in a statement.

International Business Machines Corp.’s Watson platform is designed to help clients improve the operational efficiency of their physical assets and address potential risk through insights driven by artificial intelligence. Its factory and construction industries solution, Maximo Worker Insights, monitors biometric and environmental data in near real-time from wearables and other connected devices to help employers identify potential hazards in the workplace, according to the statement.

Guardhat’s proprietary software actively monitors a user’s location, pulse, body temperature and work environment. This provides a holistic view of every user’s work environment and instant alerts in the event of a fall, exposure to toxic gases, lockout zones and proximity to moving equipment, according to the statement.

The application of such technologies allows industrial leaders to recognize and respond to potential risks in near real-time, leading to a reduction of injuries and accidents in the workplace, according to the statement.