Blackline Safety is a technology leader driving innovation in the industrial workforce through IoT (Internet of Things). With connected safety devices and predictive analytics, Blackline enables companies to drive towards zero safety incidents and improved operational performance. Blackline provides wearable devices, personal and area gas monitoring, cloud-connected software and data analytics to meet demanding safety challenges and enhance overall productivity for organizations with customers in more than 75 countries. Armed with cellular and satellite connectivity, Blackline provides a lifeline to tens of thousands of people, having reported over 323 billion data-points and initiated over eight million emergency alerts. For more information, visit BlacklineSafety.com and connect with us on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn and Instagram.
When a company decides to invest in lone worker safety devices for their workforce, worker's lives are on the line. That is why it’s important to consider the safety features and supporting software available on the market — not all devices and systems are created equal. Quality is crucial when choosing a lone worker system, and compromise is not an option. Here are ten considerations to take into account when looking for a device-based lone worker safety solution:
1) True Fall Detection
In some cases, a lone worker can reach out for help under their own power after a fall. However, in dire situations where they aren’t able to communicate, the gyroscope fall detection capabilities of a lone worker device can be a lifesaver. This technology can automatically differentiate between a fall’s signature movements and those associated with actions like jumping off a truck’s tailgate or walking down stairs. The technology can be adjusted to dovetail with activity levels and employee roles, using advanced micro-electromechanical sensors to monitor a lone worker’s motion continuously. If a fall is indicated and the employee doesn’t deactivate the alarm to confirm their wellbeing, a pre-determined alert response is triggered.
2) No-Motion Detection
The ability to detect a “man down” incident is crucial for employee safety. If there is no motion for a configurable amount of time, safety devices need to automatically issue an audible, visual and tactile local alarm to the user and notify monitoring personnel so they can ensure the employee’s safety. At this point, your lone worker employee can turn off an alarm to indicate no help is required, but if he or she does not respond to the local alert, a monitoring team should be notified so an emergency response can be initiated.
When using Blackline Safety’s live monitoring, our team will receive the person’s name and precise location, and the type of alert sent. This service is staffed with professionally trained monitoring agents 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. They will immediately respond, according to emergency response protocols set by your company, so your employee receives help as quickly as possible. When these incidents occur, every second counts to ensure help is on the way.
3) Missed Check-Ins
Traditionally, lone worker safety monitoring included each employee periodically disrupting their work to check-in and confirm their wellbeing. This could mean that they called a co-worker, supervisor, call center or automated call-in system. If a company required a call every two hours and something happened shortly after, that lone worker could need help for up to two hours before their next check-in was missed, and a response was initiated when the missed check-in is noticed.
Fortunately, this old school check-in system can be replaced with new technology. Blackline's G8 Lone Worker device helps provide increased safety tracking, including check-in prompts, without interrupting employee productivity or taking them away from a task.
4) Emergency Latch
There are times when a lone worker will need to actively reach out for help, such as the case of a recent vehicle collision in a remote area of Mexico that led to the explosion of a tanker truck. The nearest city was 30 miles away, but an observer of this crash was wearing a Blackline lone worker device and quickly responded by pulling the device’s SOS latch. A phone response took place within 35 seconds, and emergency response quickly dispatched with fire and ambulance personnel arriving on the scene within 20 minutes.
A lone worker system needs the capability to allow employees to reach out for help at any time, from any place, with an instantly triggered alert so that no worker gets left behind.
5) Two-Way Communications
Integrated communications capability takes a lone worker monitoring system to the next level by giving it practical usage on a day-to-day basis. The push-to-talk functionality on Blackline lone worker devices eliminates the hassle, range limitations, and expense of two-way radios by incorporating those communication capabilities into an intrinsically safe, wearable device. Lone workers can use their device to talk to other employees quickly and easily, whenever needed, significantly improving productivity, efficiency, and device adoption. Blackline devices also allow for two-way text messaging, which is helpful for mass notifications to all active devices in a particular area. Combining all these features into one device can save companies thousands of dollars over the lifetime of their fleet, and offers the peace of mind that comes from knowing that workers can easily communicate on the job (and are protected even when they can't call for help themselves).
6) 24/7 Monitoring
When alerts are triggered, a fast, accurate response is crucial for your team’s safety. If a business doesn’t have a supervisor available or an around-the-clock safety control room, outsourcing 24/7 monitoring services is an option to ensure the safety of workers at all times. When choosing monitoring services, it’s important to select one with professionally trained agents who address an alert from the moment it comes in until the situation is completely resolved.
Unlike traditional call centers that often split their focus between telemarketing and IT support, Blackline’s Safety Operations Center (SOC) is staffed with professionally trained monitoring agents 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Our team utilizes Blackline Live, a live online portal which provides critical insights into emergency alerts in real-time. They manage safety alerts from receipt through to resolution by following your tailored and documented emergency response protocol. And if an emergency takes place, our agents are empowered to dispatch local emergency services. With 99% of alerts responded to in under a minute, Blackline’s SOC facilitates worry-free monitoring services and support so that your employees can take comfort knowing that you have their back.
7) Cloud Connectivity
When monitoring software is delivered through an online interface, companies benefit in numerous ways. In our system, there’s no software to manually install, update, and manage, so no support is needed from busy IT professionals. Blackline's lone worker safety devices are kept up to date automatically as a result of their built in connectivity. Blackline Live provides companies with high service availability, with a cloud-hosted infrastructure operating 24/7/365, with 99.9% uptime.
Our workforce safety platform supports clients in more than 100 countries, in multiple languages, around the globe. Data is securely stored, available whenever companies need access for reporting or analytics, including alert records, gas exposures, health events, and more.
8) Device Connectivity
Connectivity is a standard expectation for the majority of devices we use daily, and lone worker devices are no exception. Blackline identified this early, and connected safety has been a long term focus of our device and platform design. Our devices come with integrated antennae to connect devices to LTE and Dual-Band GPS/GNSS whenever they are in operation. Connectivity allows communication services to function, and maintains a lifeline between the device wearer and remote monitoring teams – ours, yours, or both. Unlike phones or app-based lone worker monitoring solutions, dedicated lone worker devices are not impacted by cellular carrier choice, variability in battery life, personal device privacy, or system platforms.
For workers outside of reliable cellular coverage, Blackline G7x devices can pair with a G7 dock to connect workers to support via the Iridium Satellite network. When working indoors with less reliable GPS location services, Blackline Location Beacons form a network of wireless positioning transmitters to improve the accuracy of the device user's reported location on maps in Blackline Live.
9) Intrinsically Safe Design
Whether your facilities have intrinsic safety/ATEX requirements, or workers have the potential of operating in conditions that demand this, a worker safety device built to intrinsically safe/ATEX design standards is an important consideration for your safety program. Blackline Safety lone worker devices are compliant in these environments, and ensure that work can proceed with the full function of safety wearables intact. Many alternative tools do not meet these requirements, including phones and some traditional radios. Blackline's solution covers communication and safety needs in one device that doesn't limit a worker's ability to safely operate anywhere the job takes them.
10) Seamless Gas Detection
Another key feature of a optimal lone worker safety platform is the ability to seamlessly integrate gas detection when required. Whether single gas or multi-gas detection is needed, it’s important to have the flexibility to integrate gas detection in your specific worksites. G7 can easily be adapted to be a wireless gas detector through our exclusive modular design to support environmental gas detection — and, when needed, ultra-efficient evacuation process management. This technology provides instant situational awareness and connectivity across industry, location, and scenario. Choices exist among three cartridges (single-gas, multi-gas, and multi-gas with pump for confined space situations) and a variety of sensors to combine easily configurable technology with the specific hazards of the worksite.
Contact Blackline Safety
We invest millions of dollars into technology and research, with our systems recognized across the industry for innovation and quality. We design and manufacture our devices and cloud-hosted software platform in-house. The result is the world’s first work-anywhere, turnkey, lone worker safety monitoring solution, one that offers the versatility required to meet customers’ most stringent expectations.
To discuss your company’s optimal lone worker system, please contact us.