Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) has expanded the use of Kenzen wearable technology to 350 employee volunteers as part of its ‘Beat the Heat’ programme this summer
EGA has focused for more than a decade on eliminating heat-related illness every summer, a real hazard for anyone working outside in the UAE, where temperatures can exceed 50 degrees during the summer months.
Under EGA‘s ‘Beat the Heat’ programme, employees are trained to detect the early signs of heat stress in themselves and others. EGA conducts hydration tests before and during shifts, and employees are encouraged to take regular breaks and cooling showers. Cooling booths, drinking stations, icemakers, and portable air conditioning units in EGA production areas help keep people cool.
EGA used wearable devices for the first time in a trial of 50 volunteers last summer. Kenzen’s wearable technology offers the potential to protect outdoor workers in the UAE by continuously reporting core body temperature, heart rate, activity and other body indicators in real time, allowing both the wearer and EGA’s safety team to detect heat strain in the body before the early signs can be felt.
Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, chief executive officer of Emirates Global Aluminium, said, “Heat-related illness is a serious threat to health and even life in our region, and increasingly around the world. Our work has shown that heat-related illness is entirely preventable, even in challenging industrial environments like ours. Wearable technology offers the potential to protect people even more, and I am looking forward to the results of the wider trial we are conducting this summer.”
Kyle Hubregtse, CEO of Kenzen, said, "By combining Kenzen's wearable technology with EGA's dedication to workforce well-being, we are setting new benchmarks in heat stress management and advancing the frontiers of occupational health."
