Awareness and adoption of wearable technologies for health and safety management in the Nigerian construction industry

Abstract

PurposeTechnologies have had a positive impact on the construction industry. Technologies such as BIM, automation, augmented and virtual reality, Internet of Things and robotics have been adopted by construction firms to enhance productivity. However, not much research has been done on the awareness and adoption of wearable technologies for health and safety (H&S) management. This paper investigates the level of awareness and adoption of wearable technologies for H&S management in the Nigerian construction industry.Design/methodology/approachA quantitative research method was adopted for the study. An electronic questionnaire format was used as an instrument to collect the data. Both descriptive (mean score) and inferential statistics (Kruskal–Wallis test) were used to analyse the data.FindingsThe results indicate that organisations rarely use H&S wearable devices for H&S management although professionals within the construction industry are somewhat aware of the common H&S wearable devices. The findings further indicate that all 11 variables were perceived as “rarely adopted”, whereas 2 variables were perceived as “aware”, 3 variables as “slightly aware” and the remaining 6 variables as “somewhat aware”.Research limitations/implicationsData were collected from only construction professionals working in government agencies, consultancy firms and grade D contracting firms in Lagos and Abuja. For a broader perspective, a study that expands the number of states and categories of construction firms is recommended.Practical implicationsThe construction industry in Nigeria can use the recommendations to improve H&S management on site. Moreover, the recommendations can contribute to the development of policies to promote the adoption of wearable technologies in construction sites.Originality/valueResearch on wearable technologies, particularly in the Nigerian construction industry, is at the developing stage. With this article, the authors contribute to the body of knowledge in this area of research.