Better safe than sorry – boosting workplace safety with interactive textiles

Abstract

Despite various safety regulations and procedures, work accidents remain a significant problem in the global process industry as well as the Swedish steel industry. In order to address personal safety and safety culture, wearable alert systems based on Internet of Things (IoT) technology were prototyped and tested with steel workers in iterative workshops following the Constructive Design Research approach. Results show that interactive textile patches worn on the protection gear are a simple way of transmitting personal alerts with light. Another crucial design factor is to enable the communication between the worker, peers and the control room. The visual design can positively impact the acceptance of the patch but only adds minimal value to the safety culture. The present study contributes to the field research by approaching workplace safety and culture with new, innovative IoT and e-textile technologies and opening up new design spaces in this area.