How is the industrial world of work changing with the implementation of smart wearables?

In the sector of industrial production, the usage of smart wearables is becoming more and more important especially for employees. While economic aspects are often in the foreground when introducing smart wearables, it will be primarily the change in work design that needs to be discussed. This can help manufacturing companies to derive targeted implications for applications. This is how the decision for smart wearables can be facilitated.

In order to expand smart wearables in the industrial production, it is helpful to differentiate between different areas of application. This differentiation is based on fundamental questions about the usage. What can smart wearables be used for and what kind of value they can add for individual areas? The change that occurs in the different areas and departments is also of interest here.

Smart wearables change the communication

Consumers are already familiar with smart wearables such as smart watches as a tool that makes communication easier. But this advantage is also the case for industrial smart wearables. In the production environment, smart watches can be used as a time-saving digital communication channel. They can facilitate the communication within a team as well as across teams.

In concrete terms, this means that the digital networking of employees allows information to be transmitted quickly as well as forwarded transparently to higher levels. The resulting time savings are an aspect that can enormously increase the efficiency in the production. Employees are relieved to have more time for their actual work without being held up by laborious communication channels.

Smart wearables support the identification

In addition, industrial smart wearables can also be used for identification or registration at the workplace. Through a digitalized and personalized “check in”, employees’ working hours can be registered in real time. This enables a replacing of the outdated stamp system.

Smart wearables optimize the management

Furthermore, the management can benefit from the introduction of industrial smart wearables. With the help of the intelligent devices, process data can be easily recorded, analyzed and subsequently evaluated.

In the future, there will be no need for manual and analog documentation anymore, which can immensely reduce the risk of data loss. Managers receive a transparent overview of all relevant key figures and can therefore draw implications for future improvements.

Smart wearables enable more flexibility

In addition to the fact that industrial smart wearables can optimize the management, the use of them creates a new form of flexibility. Through the individual distribution of tasks, fixed teams are dissolved, and flexible groups are created. This leads to a more targeted, detached, and adaptable distribution of work among employees and enables cross-departmental and cross-hierarchical collaboration.

Smart wearables change the coordination

The navigation of employees in industrial work areas can be controlled and optimized with the help of smart wearables. In addition to the transparent recording of employees’ working hours, industrial smart wearables will also be used for targeted deployment planning in the future. This means that department managers will no longer have to prepare cumbersome schedules but will be able to deploy their employees specifically for individual activities by transmitting tasks via smart wearables.

But not only employees can be controlled and coordinated – smart wearables also support process and coordination activities.

By digitally distributing tasks, forwarding information, and planning employee deployment, daily processes in production sites can be optimized. Manual schedules and data entry can be replaced to ensure a more efficient coordination of all processes.

Smart wearables offer continuous learning processes

In addition to the daily increasing effectiveness as well as facilitation of work, industrial smart wearables can also drive future processes. Looking into the future, they primarily serve to develop competencies by providing employees with continuous support for learning and teaching processes.

By making data and activity instructions digitally available and at the same time recording problems, employees can access knowledge and information independently and consequently continue to develop and grow.

Smart wearables improve the quality

In short the previously mentioned factor also illustrates a constant quality assurance and improvement, for instance. Through the smart networking, control, and coordination of the employees among each other as well as the linking of man and machine, the quality of the industrial companies can be guaranteed and continuously increased at the same time.

Smart wearables provide support

And last but not least, smart wearables are used to support work tasks. With the help of industrial smart watches, all relevant work steps can be directly transmitted to the employee’s wrist, so that the execution of work orders no longer represents a challenge.

One focus in the industry will be the question what kind of application areas exist for smart wearables. It is important to ask where specific improvements can be achieved in the long term. Additionally, it is important to consider how the individual work tasks of employees will change. An increased use of smart wearables will actually affect work design.

Flexibility is an important keyword here when it comes to the way work is performed. This considers the distribution of roles and competencies of employees.

Aspects such as the leadership of a company will come into spotlight as well. Smart Wearables will imply a new way of working together in the future. At employee level, it is important to consider which competencies will be important. When performing their individual tasks it is important to know how employees can be qualified properly.

Smart wearables as a request of employees

Studies have shown that employees in areas such as production are increasingly demanding the use of new technologies. The attractiveness of a job heavily depends on the digital equipment of the workplace nowadays. Smart wearables such as smart watches or tablets are particularly desired by employees as helping tools to better perform their tasks.

The trend towards digital tools at the workplace is currently increasing while at the same time putting pressure on employers to implement this desire. In order to remain attractive to both potential and existing employees, it is essential to use smart wearables. This is especially important in areas of production, that shoulg integrate them into the working environment in the long term.

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