Top 10: Smart PPE Products

Smart PPE combines conventional protection with connected sensors, software and data analysis. 

On construction sites, it can detect unsafe movement, monitor heat strain, map worker location or provide digital information at the point of work. 

Adoption grew during the 2010s as Internet of Things (IoT) networks, wearable sensors and mobile connectivity became robust enough for complex, hazardous project environments. 

Early solutions largely tracked location and detected falls; today’s products also support ergonomic coaching, proximity alerts, fatigue prevention and real-time decision-making. 

The shift moves PPE beyond passive protection towards prevention, helping safety teams identify risks before an injury occurs. Below, are the top 10 smart PPE products, including Spot-r, the Aatmunn Smart Helmet and the uvex 1 Techware Smart Insole.

10. EksoVest

Company: Ekso Bionics 

CEO: Scott Davis

EksoVest is a spring-powered upper-body exoskeleton designed to relieve strain during repetitive overhead work. 

This includes mechanical, electrical and finishing tasks on construction projects. 

The wearable transfers load away from a worker’s shoulders and arms, providing adjustable support without motors, batteries or charging requirements. 

Launched in 2018, EksoVest reflects a practical category of smart PPE. 

It leverages augmentation technology that reduces musculoskeletal risk at the source while retaining worker mobility. 

It is particularly relevant where workers hold tools at chest height or above for extended periods.

9. XR10

Company: Trimble

CEO: Rob Painter

Trimble XR10 with HoloLens 2 is a hard-hat-integrated mixed-reality headset for safety-controlled environments. 

It enables frontline teams to visualise coordinated 3D models, digital instructions and project information while retaining hands-free access to the job at hand. 

Used with cloud-based, collaboration platform, Trimble Connect for HoloLens, the device supports remote team work, planning and reporting without removing workers from the workface. 

Although primarily a productivity tool, XR10’s PPE-compatible format helps teams identify clashes, installation issues and hazards before work proceeds.

8. SafeWork Sensor

Company: StrongArm Technologies

CEO: Jeff Bales

StrongArm’s SafeWork Sensor is a connected ergonomic wearable that gives workers real-time haptic feedback when it detects high-risk movement. 

The device collects movement data and delivers it to an AI-powered platform, enabling managers to spot recurring strain risks and target coaching. 

It can also deliver personalised microlearning through the SafeWork Training platform. 

StrongArm says its system is proven to reduce injuries by up to 89%, while earlier customer evidence reported a 52% year-on-year reduction across users.

7. Reflex

Company: Kinetic 

CEO: Adam Price

Kinetic’s Reflex is a wearable safety device that uses motion data and artificial intelligence to identify hazardous work patterns, particularly movements associated with overexertion and musculoskeletal injuries. 

The product is designed to deliver personalised feedback at the moment a worker is most able to correct a movement, rather than relying solely on post-incident reporting. 

For construction employers, this offers a route to turn manual-handling and ergonomic risk into measurable, actionable data. 

Its value lies in preventive coaching and aggregated workforce intelligence.

6. Biometric Patch

Company: Kenzen 

CEO: Kyle Hubregtse

Kenzen’s biometric patch is an upper-arm wearable designed to identify heat strain before it progresses to heat exhaustion or heat stroke. 

Paired with a mobile application and supervisor dashboard, it continuously monitors indicators including body temperature and heart rate, while providing real-time alerts for workers and safety teams. 

The system also gives anonymised workforce data that can inform practical interventions, such as revised break schedules and improved hydration provision. 

This is highly relevant to outdoor construction activity, including road, roofing and infrastructure work.

5. SHK-1

Company: STUDSON

CEO: Ryan Barnes

STUDSON’s SHK-1 is a Type II safety helmet engineered to protect against both top and side impacts, addressing a critical limitation of traditional hard hats. 

The full-brim version was the first helmet of its type to meet American National Standards Institute Type I and Type II requirements, combining 360-degree protection with ventilation, sun shade and rain management. 

Its Koroyd energy-absorbing technology helps manage impact forces, making it a significant step forward in head protection for workers vulnerable to falls and lateral impacts.

4. uvex 1 Techware Smart Insole

Company: uvex safety group

CEO: Stefan Brück

The uvex 1 Techware Smart Insole integrates digital sensing into safety footwear in the PPE item that directly connects a worker with the work surface. 

Its sensors can identify slips, temporary loss of control and movement patterns, then support targeted alerts around known hazards. 

The insole can also monitor the safety condition of footwear, helping employers identify degradation that could undermine protective performance. 

Launched as part of uvex’s digital PPE initiative, it demonstrates how connected technology can turn routine safety shoes into an active risk-detection tool.

3. WakeCap Smart Helmet

Company: WakeCap Technologies

CEO: Dr Hassan Albalawi

WakeCap’s hard-hat-mounted wearable converts a standard construction helmet into a connected site-visibility tool. 

The system tracks worker presence and movement, supporting emergency alerts, fatigue monitoring, productivity analysis and more informed project controls. 

Rather than relying on GPS, WakeCap uses an IoT approach designed for dense and complex construction environments. 

The company has built its proposition around worker-first project intelligence: construction teams can use live workforce data to improve safety compliance, understand site activity and identify conditions that may create operational or personal risk.

2. Aatmunn Smart Helmet

Company: Aatmunn

CEO: Praveer Kumar

Aatmunn’s smart helmet combines a hard hat with connected sensors, communications and safety software to create a real-time view of workers and their surroundings. 

Its platform can locate users in three-dimensional space, monitor contextual environmental conditions and identify potential danger, enabling safety teams to issue alerts before an incident escalates. 

The helmet can also incorporate visual and remote-support functions, allowing an expert to assist a worker by seeing the task environment and offering instructions. 

This makes Aatmunn relevant not only for construction but also for mining and manufacturing, where isolation, moving equipment and hazardous atmospheres can create fast-changing risks.

The product’s core advantage is its combination of PPE and a broader connected-worker system. 

Guardhat rebranded to Aatmunn in January 2024, marking its evolution from a company focused on industrial smart hardhats into a wider connected-worker and asset intelligence platform. 

1. Spot-r

Company: Invixium 

CEO: Shiraz Kapadia

Spot-r is a connected-worker platform built around a wearable clip that delivers safety and operational intelligence for construction sites. 

Workers wear the device on their PPE, allowing project teams to understand location, movement and site presence without relying on manual headcounts or paper-based checks. 

Its fall-detection capability can identify a sudden impact and alert supervisors, while its associated platform supports access control, evacuation management and site-wide workforce visibility.

Users can link Spot-r Clip devices to access-control technology, allowing contractors to verify who has entered the jobsite and better manage workforce records, including training and compliance information. 

During an emergency, the wider Spot-r ecosystem can help teams identify whether personnel have cleared an affected area and coordinate response activity faster. 

It is especially valuable on large, multi-employer projects where changing crews, restricted areas and dispersed work zones complicate conventional safety management.