SA Water Trials Wearable Worker Safety Initiative

Original article published by NSCA Foundation

An innovative safety initiative is helping SA Water explore how new technology can lead to greater health and wellbeing outcomes for its staff. Researchers from the University of South Australia have teamed up with SA water to pilot the new study, which will see SA Water analyse physiological data captured in the field and identify opportunities for early detection and intervention of potential safety issues. Wristband sensors and smart shirts are among the devices being tested by 15 staff members from SA Water’s Kadina Depot, and Trade West and water sampling teams.

Kylie Johnson, General Manager of People and Safety for SA Water, said the safety initiative could have broad applications across its workforce. In collaboration with the University of South Australia, staff from SA Water will undertake specific work activities such as driving prolonged distances and pipe maintenance to understand how their bodies respond, measure their vital signs and monitor the effect of heat, fatigue and sleep. Johnson said that the wearable devices provide the opportunity to capture mental and physical wellbeing insights.

“With a vast water network, our people are often performing challenging physical tasks in a range of weather conditions and our trial will explore how technology can improve their health and wellbeing. For example, the wristband sensors our Kadina team are wearing can quantify sleep deprivation and the resulting effect on alertness, focus and mental health. Biometric smart shirts with sensors embedded in the textiles monitor the cardiac and respiratory system to capture greater knowledge about physical strain. All of these collective insights can lead to improved situational awareness and allow certain work activities to be altered, postponed or optimised, creating better safety outcomes for our people. The idea to trial these devices was conceived by our own people, who over the years have seen the success of proactive measures in preventing harm during some of their daily tasks,” Johnson said.

The data and learnings captured by the University of South Australia will be used by SA Water to assess the feasibility of adopting each device and understand which items could gain value from their use on an ongoing basis. The project’s lead, UniSA Research Professor Jill Dorrian, an expert in occupational safety, fatigue and sleep, said findings for the study could set a new precedent for proactive safety practices.

“Our research continues to find that issues such as fatigue and sleep are prevalent across industries and can often increase the risk of workplace incidents, but our trial could open the door for the use of innovative technologies that support an even more proactive approach to safety and wellbeing. Literature from researchers overseas demonstrates the use of wearable devices can increase employee satisfaction, while providing early detection and intervention for improved decision-making around how physical tasks are performed or managing individual workload to avoid burnout. We’re delighted to partner on this project with SA Water, who have shown a genuine emphasis on safety and improving their people’s wellbeing,” Dorrian said.

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