How to Support Lone Worker Safety on Construction Sites with Smart Badges

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As the demand for construction continues throughout the world, so does the need for quality safety measures and solutions for our workforce.

There is a labor shortage throughout the construction industry, and contractors must support their workforce with quality solutions that enhance performance and safety throughout a jobsite. 

As we all are aware, construction sites can be very dangerous environments for anyone. Since many contractors work in pairs, there are times when there is a lone worker on the jobsite.

The safety risk of a lone worker goes up dramatically for many reasons, and the price can be heavy when there is an incident. 

To give light on the weight of safety, in 2021, an average OSHA construction fine for fatalities was an average of $67,680. The fines for fatalities continue to increase every year.

It is important for contractors to understand the value of lone worker safety devices like smart badges. The safer the jobsite, the more productive the project, typically.

Smart badges are wearables that can act as an RFID badge, use real-time location and GPS, and allow indoor Bluetooth or LoRa-WAN for capturing and providing safety information and solutions.

Contractors can add, track, and manage their workforce certifications and licenses for one or multiple projects at a time. The smart badges by Kwant provide safety solutions like fall detection, near-miss alerts, SOS button alerts, and restriction of high-risk zones. 

Here are a few major reasons how smart badges support lone worker safety on construction sites.

Understand location of workers on jobsite

When using smart badges, you can use real-time location to know who is on the jobsite, whether indoors or outdoors, on one or multiple construction sites. The information contractors gain from smart badges allow them to ensure lone workers are safe in specific locations and quickly respond if needed. 

Knowing where your workforce is at all times is crucial for construction site safety. Smart badges help bring accountability and help provide a time-lapse review of where your workforce and contractors were working before or after an incident. 

Monitor workforce activities on the jobsite 

Smart badges can be incorporated within the worker onboarding process when they reach the jobsite. Once a worker has their smart badge, they are ready to enter the jobsite with safety solutions to support. Smart badges connect to a dedicated software that provides key information about your workforce’s location, man hours, and allows for tracking of time versus motion.

When using smart badges by Kwant, contractors get jobsite heatmaps and allow them to monitor bottlenecks and areas that might be dangerous for their workforce.

When using smart badges of your workforce, safety leaders can ensure safety protocols are upheld and kept to standards. Once safety standards are upheld, your jobsite becomes a compliant work site.

Gain real-time incident alerts & notifications 

Since construction sites are so dangerous, management cannot be everywhere at once. It is important to have the proper solutions in place to alert workers and management of the potential dangers and hazards of a work site.

Smart badges allow management to get instant alerts and notifications when danger approaches or happens. 

Having smart badges by Kwant specifically provide management with alerts and notifications toward worker fall detection, near misses, SOS alerts, and when entering a high-risk zone. When an incident occurs, you only have seconds to respond, so having smart badges is a very strong approach to automating safety information for fast follow-ups. 

Management can also send instant notifications and alerts to their workforce when entering the wrong zone or when there are dangerous weather conditions so they can evacuate. Communication is key when it comes to safety and productivity on a construction site.

Smart badges to support lone worker safety

When considering solutions to support lone worker safety and monitoring, there are many devices and services out on the market. It is important for contractors to understand their workforce type, project landscape, and what is required for the job to be successful and safe for their workforce.

Many companies use smart phone apps, but the issue with apps is that phones can be a major distraction on the jobsite. Smart badges connect through cellular connection but do not provide the distractions of common cell phones when working.

The Kwant smart badges provide contractors with real-time location for their workforce and allows management to stay on top of what’s important, safety of their workforce.

See how easy it is to get started with smart badges for your next construction project and streamline workforce safety to support lone workers.