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Around 15% of workers today report that they are required to work alone more often than they were before COVID-19 struck.
The statistic is suggestive of the move to remote and hybrid work precipitated by the pandemic.
It’s understandable then that lone-worker safety solutions have become more of a hot topic among companies looking to protect lone workers.
But how do you choose the most effective and appropriate bit of kit?
This quick guide should give you some guidance and ideas.
*This is a collaborative post. For more details please see my Disclosure Policy.
Personal Alarms
Lone workers are vulnerable to many different kinds of threats, not least physical attacks and weapon‐related violence. Rates of both have spiralled in recent years.
As such, it’s important that they have the means of defending themselves. And this includes calling for assistance when an emergency arises.
A good personal safety device or lone worker alarm can help here.
Today’s personal alarms are more sophisticated than the simple high-pitched noisemakers from the past. And they can be run on a worker’s mobile phone.
Such alarms typically come kitted out with handy tools like on-screen SOS buttons and True Man-Down detection, which alerts the emergency services or colleagues back at base if the worker is incapacitated and unable to call for help himself.
ATEX Handsets
While a smartphone-enabled safety app or personal alarm is a good fit for many workers, it’s not right in all circumstances.
For example, in workplaces where combustible or volatile materials are handled, a regular mobile phone might represent more of a risk than a safety device.
That’s because equipment like smartphones can sometimes give off sparks. Or they can produce heat or static electricity, causing volatile materials to ignite.
ATEX handsets are made for these situations. They use low-energy circuitry that minimises the risk of sparks. They also come encased in a heavy-duty, ruggedised casing that ensures they are safe to use, whatever the environment.
Push-to-Talk Handsets
Many workers, especially those in heavy industries, prefer the familiarity of an old-fashioned two-way radio handset over a fiddly modern device.
However, traditional two-way radios rely on dedicated radio channels. Plus they tend to require a direct line of sight between transmitter and receiver to keep in contact.
The good news is that nowadays workers can enjoy the best of both worlds – the old-school look-and-feel of a push-to-talk radio allied with WIFI or cellular connectivity with a Push-to-Talk (PTC) handset.
DECT
Ideal for locations like hospitals or engineering plants, a DECT setup uses its own dedicated network paired with handheld walkie-talkie devices. This keeps employees in contact with one another.
DECT uses its own frequency band (around 1.9 GHz in the UK), separate from Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz / 5 GHz / 6 GHz) and mobile networks. This helps reduce interference from other devices, affording reliable voice communication.
The private cordless phone devices can also include safety features for lone workers, including man-down detection and even running detection. This senses when a worker is moving rapidly, which suggests the worker finds himself in an emergency or violent scenario.
Conclusion
Selecting the right lone worker safety kit for your workforce can be tricky, but as our guide has shown, there’s a device for any work type and workplace.
A company like ANT Telecom stocks all the lone worker devices we have on our list, and many more.