The HSE has opened an invitation to employers and other organisations to participate in two new shared research projects, aiming to shape the regulator’s future policies around workplace wearables, and drone devices used for “remote visual inspection”. 

The two projects are the latest in a series of research studies co-funded by sponsor organisations but overseen and managed by the HSE. 

A study on cobots is nearing the end of its planned 18 month programme, while there are also projects on escalator safety, oil mists, and reducing dust in construction.  

The project investigating wearables in the workplace will explore how these devices, coupled with positioning technologies and sensors, could benefit health and safety.

It will “help find solutions to the key issues and barriers to effective adoption of wearables in the workplace”.

Its scope will include the types of systems available and their relevance to health and safety, how data can be extracted to assist decision-making and the acceptability of devices to workers