The smartphone as an emergency signaling device

Even though occupational safety in production has been improved by modern systems and personal protective equipment, there is still a risk of serious accidents. Hazards arise in particular when handling tools, machines, robots and means of transportation. In addition, working with gases, vapors and dust as well as tripping, slipping and falling can lead to injuries. Lone workers are on their own in emergency situations and no one can provide first aid and trigger the rescue chain.

Official PNA often expensive and inconvenient

According to § 25 of the accident prevention regulation, the employer must ensure that the necessary help can be summoned immediately in the event of an emergency by means of reporting devices and organizational measures. As this applies in particular to individual workplaces, suitable monitoring measures must be taken. This can be done using personal emergency signaling systems (PNA), among other things. With a personal emergency signaling device (PNG), employees can either trigger an alarm themselves in an emergency or the alarm is triggered automatically. However, official and certified PNAs are very expensive and inconvenient to use.

No additional devices required

Digitalization also opens up new opportunities for the protection of individual workstations. Business smartphones in particular are becoming personal emergency signal devices. Katharina Hochmuth, co-founder of Calima, explains: "Our Calima app transforms the smartphone into a PNG that offers manual and automatic ways to trigger an emergency call."

The solution was developed in accordance with DGUV regulation 112-139. By installing Calima on iOS and Android devices, employees do not need to carry any additional devices with them and employers do not need to make any further hardware investments. The digital PNA is also in no way inferior to the traditional one in terms of reliability. Tim Hautkappe, technical director of Calima, explains: "Smartphones are increasingly being used in safety-relevant areas thanks to the millions of tried-and-tested sensor components that automatically detect emergencies."

Wanted: A smartphone-based solution

Over 300 companies are already protecting their lone workers with the Calima emergency system. This includes the industrial company Hexcel, a manufacturer of carbon fiber reinforcements and resin systems. At the sites in Austria, people in various departments work alone.

"In the course of switching from DECT to WLAN networks, we looked for smartphone-based solutions. Calima particularly impressed us with the high level of user-friendliness and flexibility of the emergency chain," says safety expert Stefan Schwarzmüller. The need for this safety solution in the manufacturing industry is also demonstrated by other reference customers such as NKT, Yaskawa Europe, Freudenberg, IFF and Carlsberg.