Sensors and gizmos and data, oh my: informating firefighters' personal protective equipment.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Amidon TR ; Callahan R ; Lipsey T ; Nuckols G ; Rice S ; Williams EA
• Description:
  This study identifies communication design challenges associated with firefighters' personal protective equipment (PPE), an assemblage of wearable technologies that shield these workers from occupational hazards. Considering two components of modern firefighting PPE through Zuboff's (1998) theorization of information technology, we offer an extended case study that illustrates how these wearables, as interfaces, automate or informate firefighters' practice of safety. Often lauded for their abilities to augment firefighters' work capacities and increase safety outcomes, our analysis revealed that these wearables engender practices that expose firefighters to unforeseen hazards and displace the "tacit craft skills and knowledge" that these workers mobilize to mitigate workplace risk (Spinuzzi, 2005, p. 164). Drawing from these insights, we sketch four points of tension that communication designers, system architects, and practitioners may utilize to consider the informating potential of smart-firefighting PPE equipped with physiological sensors. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Firefighters Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Occupational Safety And Health; PPE; Wearables; Automation; Interface Personal Protective Equipment; PPE; Monitors; Wearable Technologies; Fire Fighters; Physiological Measurements; Emerging Technology; Equipment Design; Sensors;
• ISSN:
  2166-1642
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; OSHA Region 8
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  15-30
• Volume:
  5
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20065770
• Citation:
  Commun Des Q Rev 2017 Dec; 5(4):15-30
• Email:
  tim.amidon@colostate.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2018
• NORA Priority Area:
  Manufacturing ; Mining
• Performing Organization:
  University of Colorado Denver, Aurora
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20160901
• Source Full Name:
  Communication Design Quarterly Review
• End Date:
  20260831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:e89456b936551bb81c8075286ea4095da5930c2f6c619a42b3afb8c1e5f63aa9413caef10bca6cd7e18595f048cf4b02f44e1fe0492ab6fa691b399e8b608ef9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/249544/cdc_249544_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 311.02 KB ]