A white paper from New York-based Kinetic examines how wearable technology can help organisations safeguard their employees from the damaging effects of musculoskeletal injuries.

Kinetic provides wearable technology that fosters safe environments for the industrial workforce. The white paper addresses how ergonomic risks can impact both worker safety and the bottom line.

Every move essential workers make while on the job can be critical to their safety, and high risk postures – such as bending, overreaching and twisting – can lead to costly injuries. The Kinetic Reflex device can improve a safety programme and fortify an organisation’s safety culture by mitigating costly ergonomic risks.

The white paper explains how such wearables deliver benefits.

Through data analytics, organisations gain the ability to know who is performing high risk postures, and to uncover why. Accumulated data can be leveraged for actionable insights and behaviour-changing technology for continuous improvements that reduce injuries and increases operational efficiencies.

Employee participation is key to improving workplace ergonomics. With an unobtrusive form, an algorithm and gamification features, the Reflex is said to be a wearable that many workers want to wear.

The direct and indirect costs of workplace injuries can be large. Companies that invest in their workforce now, augmenting them with wearable technology, can gain a competitive advantage with a 50 to 60% reduction in injury frequency and a 72% reduction in lost workdays.

“Companies that invest in innovative technologies, like wearables, will rise to the top with a safer, more productive and more engaged workforce,” said Kinetic CEO Haytham Elhawary.

The Reflex is a discrete smart wearable that is worn on belts or waistbands of industrial workers. It automatically detects unsafe work postures and provides users with real-time feedback to reduce injuries and create better work habits.

The technology was recently updated with features to enhance the contact tracing process and help keep essential employees safe during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Kinetic provides wearable technology and a software analytics platform that helps reduce workplace injuries and protects workers from Covid-19. To date, tens of thousands of workers have worn Reflex product at hundreds of facilities around the world, with a 50 to 60% reduction in injury frequency. These include companies in the retail, logistics and manufacturing industries, including six of the Fortune 50.

Kinetic was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in New York.