With the world is still healing from the effects of the pandemic, organizational leaders are looking forward to solutions to call back their employees to work. We are in the times where employee safety is of topmost importance. Organizations have to make sure to provide a safe environment to their employees, while also meeting their business goals. There are too many industries that can do remote work, while some cannot. Some industries require an employee’s physical presence. For example,
Medical care
Manufacturing
Hospitality
Construction
IoT is the only solution that comes to the mind to ensure their employees’ safety while they are physically present at work.
IoT in middle of the Pandemic:
IoT enables organizations to gather information from internet-connected instruments that can get used in a wide range of applications. For instance, IoT offers businesses with robotic identification, tracking of resources, and space utilization on campus. It can deliver GPS tracking of assets across the supply chain. IoT is helpful amid the pandemic as it can help with recognizing potential infection exposure through contract tracing, or help impose social distancing practices.
The most significant benefit of IoT overall is the ease at which it has allowed remote supervision. Whether that be equipped supervision in the industrial sector, supervising room usage from afar in a general work environment, or more extensive GPS asset tracing with supply chain and logistics handling.
Distant Supervision Solutions with IoT:
Smart Campus
- Manages environmental controls
- Recognize high use resources
- Room availability supervision
Condition-Based Maintenance
- Digitize machine data
- Preventative maintenance
- Warnings for machine failure or break down
Asset Tracing
- Real-time tracking
- Delivery verification
- Asset/load condition supervision
Earlier also, Ultra-wideband Bluetooth (UWB) & Bluetooth low energy (BLE) tools have been used in asset tracking and smart campus implementation. Today, this same technology can get reused to encourage social distancing and contact detection.
There are a few techniques recognized by public health authorities as crucial to addressing the pandemic situation.
The implementation of an IoT technique can deliver a vast number of advantages during the current crises.
Encourage social distancing applications through the use of technology.
Keep up with contact tracing norms to track the spread of the infection.
Render information to help comply with local, state, and central health guidelines.
Avoiding penalties due to a lack of compliance.
Encourage worker physical and mental safety.
Immediate social distancing feedback with IoT
A part of organizations will require higher sensitivity, accuracy, and information fidelity in their methods to deal with social distancing. Warehouse and construction staff work in conditions where closeness to one another is guaranteed. So, how can IoT help with these situations to enable social distancing? One alternative is to use the UWB innovation tool to allow accuracy location tracking.
Kinexon, Partner at Losant, has recently launched its SafeZone technology to provide employee-worn sensors to their staff. These sensors measure the distance between workers in real-time. These sensors are precise to within 4 inches. Wristband embedded with UWB Sensors get designed to release visual and sound cues when sensors are nearby, or if the time of exposure to each sensor surpasses a specific threshold. Staff gets instant feedback that they are breaching the established set of rules, and thus rapidly make resolutions.
Contact detection with IoT
Even with all the best social distancing measures at work, getting rid of the virus is not promised. When a staff member is infected and tests positive, a contact detection solution can help understand that which staff members were likely exposed, and who must take essential measures in context with health and safety.
Working in close contact with the client in the construction industry, Losant has come up with a new IoT tool, contact tracing, Losant’s method works by using little physical hardware tags controlled by BLE gateways & the Losant Enterprise IoT platform.
These tags keep a ledger of every single tag found in real-time, when a tag comes near contact, this log get pooled on the instrument. The record integrates with cloud application when the tag passes by a passage. It gives information to the Losant Platform that can get utilized to ascertain likely exposure and advise the staff to take precautions.
There are a few solutions Losant has come up with contact detection approach.
The need for real-time location services infrastructure (RTLS) or mobile apps gets redundant.
There is no recognizable data on the tags or transferred over the system.
Remodel your investments post-pandemic for asset tracking.
There is no need for position information.
The solution is movable to different locations.
Safeguarding Workers and Improving the Security:
Wireless sensors linked with a safe IoT system can help render an additional buffer zone around these workers. For instance, if critical employees have their private offices or dedicated workspaces, door sensors or motion and activity tracking sensors can warn them in real-time if someone enters their private space. Since the sensor information gets recorded, pooled, and shown on a dashboard, it could get used to confirm that only the crucial workers have set foot in between shifts and cleanings.
Leadership during the Pandemic and IoT:
Pioneers can look to IoT to solve social distancing problems, and by utilizing the technology, demonstrate an obligation to their staff to guarantee a safe working condition. Those leaders who look for these innovative solutions will rapidly recognize advantage, such as:
- Quicker staff involvement to come back to work.
- A secure workplace.
- Decrease in staff fear.
Fortunately, the solutions that are empowered via IoT already exist and can be immediately leveraged to battle the pandemic. There is a severe requirement for these solutions in our present reality, and the time-sensitive nature of the pandemic makes rapid advancement and disposition of these solutions necessary.
Conclusion:
With the rise of social distancing norms than ever, the data science company has come up with such tools that will help them work and thus follow social distancing protocols for employee safety and to run their business smoothly. IoT has proven to be a boon in the wake of pandemic crises, and this seems to be just the beginning.
Author Bio:
Melissa Crooks is Content Writer who writes for Hyperlink InfoSystem, a mobile app development company in New York, USA and India that holds the best team of skilled and expert app developers. She is a versatile tech writer and loves exploring latest technology trends, entrepreneur and startup column. She also writes for top app development companies.
source: https://theiotmagazine.com/iot-in-the-midst-of-the-social-distancing-era-3d6d9e1be51e
