The construction engineering firm Clayco is vetting manufacturers to produce what it’s calling the “hard hat of the future,” which Clayco has developed with a team of 14 students and two faculty members at the Savannah (Ga.) College of Arts and Design (SCAD).
The global hard-hat market is expected to hit $3.19 billion in sales in 2025, from $2.1 billion in 2016. Clayco has been investigating improvements in hard-hat design for more than a year, starting with a evaluation of different design trends worldwide. “We concluded that we might be better off designing a new helmet ourselves,” says Todd Friis, Clayco’s Vice President of Risk Management.
Clayco had been involved in numerous construction projects with SCAD, and also supports the school’s sustainability efforts, says Paul Runko, Collaboration Manager at SCADpro, the school’s industry partnership department.
To gain a better understanding on how construction workers use their hard hats, the students visited Clayco’s jobsite for a 14-story residence hall at SCAD’s Atlanta campus to observe and interview the labor. “For many of our students, this was the first time they had ever put on a hard hat,” says Runko.
SCAD also created an online survey that received 188 responses from workers at various locations around the country.
What the research found was that while existing hard hats are safe, too often workers aren’t wearing them because, they say, the hats are uncomfortable or too hot. What the student team also discovered was how avidly workers personalize their hats, usually with stickers. And many of the workers polled or interviewed wear sunglasses on the job, which can affect the wearability of the helmets.
Charu Pardasani a researcher, planner, and documentarian on the Clayco-SCAD team, says that the students came up with 10 conceptual and abstract ideas, from which they developed eight hard hat concepts. Clayco has selected two prototypes on which to move forward:
Clayco has selected two hard hat designs, The Captain and Pollux, to manufacture. These were chosen from eight concepts. Image: Clayco
Pollux, whose design was based on workers’ need for adaptability. The customizable design allows users to attach a magnetic LED light or mount a GoPro camera. Pollux has a rotatable, transparent full brim that provides shade and visibility. The prototype includes a chin strap, not exactly a feature workers were clamoring for, but one that is included to enhance users’ comfort and to keep the hats on their heads, especially in high-wind situations.
Captain, the second prototype, features a completely different design. It’s more like a helmet, with vents at the top and the brim. This hat also has portals for multiple accessory attachments.
Friis says that, in choosing these two models, Clayco considered weight, ventilation, lighting, and attachments. (Neither of the prototypes has a face shield, but one can be attached to each.) He adds that Clayco paid particular attention to back-of-head protection during the design phase.
The cost of the new hard hats, and when they might be available for sale, has yet to be determined. Runko notes that during the 10-week design period, a group of students was dedicated to selecting materials with an eye toward affordability.
Clayco’s involvement can be seen as part of its broader effort to improve jobsite safety. That effort got a boost from a $1 million five-year grant that Clayco and the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis received from the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health and CPWR The Center for Construction Research and Training.
In 2013-2014, Clayco and the school had conducted a study of three of Clayco’s jobsites in St. Louis to observe and measure how ergonomic programs were being administered and complied with. Ann Marie Dale, an Associate Professor at the medical school, explains that ergonomic injuries occur over time from the gradual and repetitive wear and tear on the body. They can include such injuries as lower-back strain, rotator cuff tears, and trigger finger deterioration.
After seeing the results of this survey, Dale and Friis met in the spring of 2017 to discuss “interventions” that might help reduce such injuries. A program for that purpose was rolled out to all of Clayco’s job sites over the course of the following year. Dale and her team continued to monitor progress at the three “control” jobsites in St. Louis. (She was accompanied on jobsites by ergonomics experts who could answer workers’ questions.)
Dale says that it took longer than anticipated to develop the safety literature to disseminate to the jobsites, as well as a training regimen. “This is not going to be a quick fix,” she concedes. Friis declined to disclose specific data about jobsite safety except to say that, as of May 2019, three-quarters of Clayco’s active construction projects were injury-free. “It’s not perfect, but the results speak for themselves.”
Dale adds that there is interest among other construction companies to adopt the Model program that UWash and Clayco have developed.
Related Stories
| Jan 9, 2014
How security in schools applies to other building types
Many of the principles and concepts described in our Special Report on K-12 security also apply to other building types and markets.
| Jan 9, 2014
16 recommendations on security technology to take to your K-12 clients
From facial recognition cameras to IP-based door hardware, here are key technology-related considerations you should discuss with your school district clients.
| Jan 7, 2014
Concrete solutions: 9 innovations for a construction essential
BD+C editors offer a roundup of new products and case studies that represent the latest breakthroughs in concrete technology.
| Jan 6, 2014
What is value engineering?
If you had to define value engineering in a single word, you might boil it down to "efficiency." That would be one word, but it wouldn’t be accurate.
| Jan 6, 2014
Green Building Initiative names Jerry Yudelson as new President
The Green Building Initiative announced today that it has named Jerry Yudelson as its president to accelerate growth of the non-profit and further leverage its green building assessment tools, including the highly recognized Green Globes rating system.
| Jan 6, 2014
An interview with Jerry Yudelson, President, The Green Building Initiative
Green building consultant Jerry Yudelson has been named President of the Green Building Initiative and the Green Globes rating program. BD+C's Robert Cassidy talks with Yudelson about his appointment and the future of Green Globes.
| Jan 3, 2014
Norman Foster proposes elevated bikeways throughout London
Called SkyCycle, the plan calls for the construction of wide, car-free decks atop the city's existing railway corridors.
| Jan 3, 2014
World’s tallest vegetated façade to sprout in Sri Lanka [slideshow]
Set to open in late 2015, the 46-story Clearpoint Residences condo tower will feature planted terraces circling the entire structure.
| Dec 31, 2013
Top 10 blog posts from 2013
BD+C editors and our contributors posted hundreds of blogs in 2013. Here's a recap of the most popular topics. They include valuable lessons from one of the first BIM-related lawsuits and sage advice from AEC legend Arthur Gensler.
| Dec 31, 2013
BD+C's top 10 stories of 2013
The world's tallest twisting tower and the rise of augmented reality technology in construction were among the 10 most popular articles posted on Building Design+Construction's website, BDCnetwork.com.