[Work-air: the ‘smart’ air bag for protecting workers at height]

Workair: l’air bag “intelligente” per la protezione dei lavoratori in altezza

The most recent report of the Italian National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work, published in 2017, reveals 535 cases of falls from a height were reported nationally between 2008 and 2012, and that falls from a height account for approximately one third of fatal accidents at work in Italy. Accidents involving falls from a height are just as frequent in the United States, particularly in the construction sector, with 9.9 fatal cases for every 100 workers, and the greatest overall number of total deaths of any sector in 2009.
Workair is a dedicated Personal Protective Equipment for height workers that is based on a special airbag technology developed by Dainese. This technology, called D-air® , uses a sophisticated electronic system to detect danger situations and deploy the airbag to protect the wearer's body without the latter needing to take any action whatsoever. That's why it's called "Intelligent Clothing". The design features a protective vest equipped with D-air® airbags positioned to protect the worker's back and chest in the event of free falls of between one and two metres, and restrained falls of more than two metres, in which case attention is focused on impacts from "swinging". The project to create Workair sees D-Airlab/Dainese collaborating with ENEL and Delta Plus, Prof. Francesco Saverio Violante of the University of Bologna, Dr. Maria Concetta Nucci and Dr. Vittorio Lodi of the Occupational Medicine Unit of the Sant' Orsola/Malpighi Teaching Hospital in Bologna, and Dr. Nicola Acciarri of the Bologna Neuroscience Research Hospital. Certification-related matters are being handled by Dolomiti Cert.