Vancouver-based Proxxi has released Contact, a wearable, Bluetooth wristband that provides employees with a tool to remain socially distanced and employers with a contact tracing tool in case of a COVID-19 outbreak
As employees begin to return to the office following the COVID-19 outbreak, Proxxi, a wearable workplace safety and technology company, has released Contact. Proxxi Contact is a Bluetooth wristband designed to provide employees with a tool to remain socially distanced on the job site and employers with a digital contact tracing tool in case of a COVID-19 diagnosis.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend that wearing masks and remaining six feet apart are the two most critical components to curb the spread of COVID-19. Contact ensures that employees remain six feet apart by gently vibrating when the wrist-worn band identifies another band within 6 feet. The devices are deployed to all personnel on a job site or workplace to help mitigate the risk of an outbreak.
In the case of a diagnosis, Contact is able to provide detailed contact tracing data to pinpoint exactly who the infected employee may have come in contact with. This allows employers to react quickly and efficiently to isolate those impacted. To ensure compliance with all federal and state regulations, Contact does not collect individual health data, making the wristband HIPAA compliant. Additionally, there is no GPS unit within the wristband itself, so no location tracking can occur inside or outside the job site.
“While many within the workforce will want to continue working remotely as restrictions are lifted, there are millions of jobs worldwide that must be done in person,” said Campbell Macdonald, Proxxi’s co-founder and CEO. “Proxxi’s Contact allows workers to safely return to their job sites and offices while providing peace of mind that social distancing measures are taken seriously and contact tracing tools are readily available in the unfortunate event that an outbreak occurs.”
According to recent reporting, the largest U.S.-based companies are targeting summer 2021 for a return to the office, with some, such as PwC, looking to begin opening one office in each of its major cities starting in May. This means that by the Fall, millions of U.S. employees could be back on job sites, production lines, and in their offices. Other U.S. companies, like Microsoft and Uber, welcomed back select employees at the end of March.
Despite many companies planning on bringing back their employees by the Fall, recent surveys still suggest that workers still do not feel completely safe in their buildings.
“What we’ve heard from our customers is that they want unintrusive, effective safety measures so their employees feel comfortable returning to their worksites,” said Macdonald. “Proxxi is dedicated to alleviating fears that many throughout the world may have about returning to work by providing two key components to help stop the spread of COVID-19: contact tracing and social distancing.”
Contact is already helping companies return to normal and curb any possible COVID-19 outbreaks. At the beginning of the year, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based ExOne implemented Proxxi’s Contact to ensure a COVID-19 outbreak on site would be limited to only the infected person. The 3D printer company has had only one positive COVID-19 case since deployment of the Bluetooth wristbands and thanks to Contact, the company was able to isolate the single worker that was at risk due to proximity to the infected worker within minutes. Today, ExOne is able to confidently go about its business using Contact to provide its employees with a gentle nudge should they get within six feet of a coworker, and by providing management the tools necessary to perform contact tracing should an outbreak occur.
About Proxxi: In 2016, Proxxi Technology released Voltage for electrical safety. The Voltage Wristband helps keep electrical workers safe and their employers protected by avoiding unnecessary injuries on the jobsite.
In March of 2020, as the Covid-19 pandemic began to have worldwide impacts, Proxxi wanted to continue helping keep employees and employers safe in the new global environment. Thus, Proxxi Contact was born, and the team got to work (from a safe distance) to make the concept of a digital social distancing and contact tracing tool a reality.
