One common question we hear is: “Which safety device do our staff need?”
To help, we’ve created a list of questions organisations should ask when choosing personal safety devices. It’s designed to clarify your team’s needs, risk profile, and emergency communication requirements.
Have you considered: What types of lone workers do you have? Do you need satellite or cellular coverage? What are your minimum requirements?
Note that the minimum feature set includes a duress button to signal for help in an emergency and GPS location.
Lone worker type?
First, place all your staff into one of three categories. You can then begin to map out their safety needs.
- Office Workers - This includes anyone who is in a fixed location for a period of time, where cellular coverage is typically available. Examples are frontline staff in high-risk environments, nurses, people walking to their car at night, lone retail staff, shift workers, caregivers and petrol station staff. 'Office workers' may not be lone workers but in a lot of circumstances, they are subject to risks and danger, and therefore may have the need to discreetly signal for help. A cell phone may potentially escalate a situation or not be on hand.
- Urban Workers - They may be based in an office but are often out in the field. They may be within cellular reception but may need to signal for help in an emergency or if they are in an area of potential risk. Roles such as parking wardens, tow truck drivers, animal/pest control, tradesman, linemen, infrastructure, maintenance, telco-installers, carers and in-home nurses would all fit into this category.
- Rural Workers - These people regularly work in remote locations outside cellular reception some or all of their working day. You may be considered urban worker 90% of your normal work week, but if 10% of your time, you are required to enter remote locations where cellular coverage is not guaranteed, you would classify as a rural worker. Examples of rural workers may include linespeople, animal control, land surveyors, long-haul truckers and stock transport drivers.
Cellular vs satellite coverage?
It is essential to cover your staff's minimum needs by matching the appropriate device to individual roles within the office, urban or rural categories. This will ensure you are not risking the well-being of your staff or leaving anyone open to preventable risk.
- Cellular - ideal for office and urban workers. Users in these areas are never in locations remote enough to be outside of coverage. Therefore, you can feel comfortable with them having a cellular-based device only. From Smartrak's portfolio, this may include the Mini PL, Personal Locator, or the Protector Pro. If one of these workers occasionally travel outside an area of coverage, then you may want to re-categorise them as rural workers.
- Satellite - ideal for rural workers. Anyone who regularly works in a remote location outside cellular coverage SOME or ALL of their day should use a satellite-based device. You may not need one device for every person, but you should have coverage for those staff potentially at risk.
What alert types do we need?
Think of the risks your staff may face and how you want the emergency to be communicated. It can be as simple as pushing a button, but there may be times your staff cannot trigger an alert themselves, and you may want a device-initiated alert (man-down) to be triggered.
The three most common alert types:
- Inactivity - The staff member isn't conscious or is unable to reach the device within a set period. The inactivity feature is valuable for anyone at risk of being rendered unconscious or being unable to trigger an alert in the event of an emergency. In these cases, the device will automatically send an alarm if the wearer has not moved for a set period of time.
- Tilt Detection - If the wearer falls and stays in a prone position, an alert will trigger. This feature is primarily used by linesmen or workers where there is a risk of shock or falling.
- Check-In - A countdown timer is set that generates an alert when the time expires. The wearer needs to push a button to acknowledge they are safe and de-active the alert before this timer expires - or an alert will be triggered. This is a handy feature for anyone in a high-risk location so they can actively and regularly acknowledge their safety. It is also useful where a worker is moving into an area without cellular reception, e.g. a basement, and needs to ensure that their supervisors will be alerted if they do not exit within a specified period of time.
Smartrak can work with you to establish a firm plan of action following a triggered alert. This will include who will be the first line of response and what the escalation plan is in the event of an emergency.
Can I check in with my lone worker in the field?
There are voice and text communication options.
- One-Way Voice - In an emergency, it is possible for the first responder to dial into the device and listen to the surrounding activity, (please note, access can be limited to calls from specific/whitelisted numbers only if required).
- Two-Way Voice - It is possible to dial into the device and have a two-way conversation if required. (Please note, calling cannot be initiated from the devices, only to the device).
- Text-Based Messaging - Some devices can message back to the Smartrak map, or you can message from the Smartrak's system to the device. This can be a useful tool to establish the status of any alert once triggered, or to check in with staff when they are on site.
Within what environment will the devices be used?
The last thing you will need to establish is the environment your lone workers will be in. Do you require specific devices that are:
Lone Worker Safety Device Features
Time to discuss your requirements
By answering the above questions, you will better understand your requirements and be able to make informed decisions around personal safety devices.
Visit our Lone Worker Safety webpage or, better still, contact Smartrak for advice on the options for your organisation or business.
