Canadian Occupational Safety

38 Canadian Occupational Safety | www.cos-mag.com TOOLS OF THE TRADE PRODUCTS & SERVICES The latest OHS innovations and industry updates Ansell provides solution to glove and cuff taping The Ansell AlphaTec Glove Connector provides chemical protection for workers via a simple device designed to attach chemical gloves to coveralls, providing a complete chemical protection solution. The ribbed cone and collar combina- tion allows secure attachment and creates a liquid-tight seal between the glove and cuff to ensure chemicals do not penetrate the skin. Currently, many workers are using tape instead of a connector — an inefficient and unreliable practice. "Workers often resort to taping their glove and cuff together to avoid chemi- cal permeation, which may initially seem like a quick and easy fix," said Marina Atme, chemical clothing portfolio manager at Ansell. "Not only is taping incon- sistent, it causes issues and waste at the end of a workday. Removing tape destroys the top layer of the suit and glove, requiring disposal of both items. With the glove connector, both pieces of PPE (personal protective equipment) can be reused if no chemical exposure occurred." The glove connector is also fully reusable after chemical exposure, providing it has been suitably decontaminated. "This product provides a lower cost of ownership and eliminates waste and good manufacturing practice concerns in critical environments," said Atme. "It was developed to offer a convenient, efficient solution for workers and safety managers, providing a reliable alternative to taping." This product works with a wide variety of chemical glove thicknesses and suit combinations, and attaches quickly and easily, providing a faster, more comfort- able option for workers exposed to chemicals each day. "Workers can more quickly tackle the job at hand and can move comfortably between tasks without worrying about jeopardizing PPE performance or their safety," said Atme. Tested in accordance with ISO 17491-3:2008, the glove connector is designed for workers in chemical, life sciences, oil and gas, military, mining, food and agriculture. The glove connector provides protection in applications commonly exposed to chemicals, such as chemical handling, clean-down operations, indus- trial tank cleaning, paint spraying and hazardous waste remediation. Nightstick introduces strapless head lamp In the world of headlamps, you'll see plenty of heavy-duty straps that fasten a headlamp to a helmet or a hard hat. However, Nightstick believes that shouldn't be the only option available. After all, even the best headbands and straps can wear down due to extensive use and constant exposure to the elements. So, the company introduced a series of Zero-Band Headlamps and included a secure mounting mechanism with every light. Helmet mounting brackets have historically increased the overall cost for a headlamp. However, Nightstick's addition of a hard hat clip mount that comes with every light addresses this need. It also prevents the user from having to search for a solution that securely fastens the light to the hard hat. "Headlamp elastic bands and rubberized straps require users to purchase strap retainer clips or retention system add-ons, and that's a hidden cost," said Russell Hoppe, marketing manager for Nightstick. "The obvious way for us to provide the greatest benefit was to remove the band altogether... Our goal is to set our- selves apart by providing a comprehensive all-inclusive solution without asking customers to purchase more after receiving less." The clip mounts easily and securely bonds to the hard hat using a sturdy industry approved pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) material. Inspired by attach- ment methods consistently used in mining industry cap lamps, each included helmet lamp bracket is designed to be lightweight and durable. The tilting-head design allows the user to change the light position without having to readjust. No drilling is required. Tilt predicts MSDs with smartphone sensor technology Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are the most frequent type of lost-time injury and the single largest source of lost-time costs in Canadian workplaces, according to the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety. Workers' compensation board figures from various jurisdic- tions indicate that MSDs account for 25 per cent to 70 per cent of total annual compensation claims. Tilt, a platform approach to assessing human movement, will be launching soon to address this problem. According to its founder, Christian Browne, Tilt helps to predict musculoskeletal injuries before they happen by identifying high- risk body posture movements. The mobile platform uses smartphone sensor technology, machine learning and data analytics algorithms to detect and score high-risk human movement in industrial workplaces. The idea for Tilt came to Browne after working as an advisor for a Canadian safety association and seeing how many companies were struggling with MSDs. "The best way to protect workers from the physical, financial and emotional harm caused by on-the-job injuries is to be proactive and prevent them from occurring in the first place," said Browne. "Our goal is to provide employers with meaningful human performance data, which can enable them to redesign certain workplace activities to improve safety and prevent injuries." Once downloaded on a company-owned smartphone, Tilt continuously cap- tures human movement data with internal sensors. The back-end analytics then search for events, such as an employee picking up an object from the floor, twist- ing, bending or spending extended periods in a static work posture. The integrated algorithm captures and analyzes events and allocates a risk score, which is then transmitted to an online supervisor's portal. Aggregated data from all employees is supplied to the employer, so trends or high-risk areas can be identified and training efforts or improvements can be targeted. Tilt also provides insights and training recommendations for reducing injuries to the user. The platform can be used in industries where workers undertake manual tasks, such as manufacturing, health care, construction and trucking. The start-up was launched in Regina and recently passed through Saskatch- ewan's Co.Labs technology accelerator program. The Tilt platform is expected to be available by the end of this year. Canadian Safety Reporter is an essential resource for the creation of a safe workplace. 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