Make Your Smartphone a Safety Accessory

Forget dogs and diamonds--smartphones are everyone’s best friends these days. As more and more of us use our mobile devices to check e-mail, view websites and text colleagues, many are finding smartphone apps to do much more: check the weather, get sports news and read the latest headlines. According to Graphic Products' Jack Rubinger, apps can also turn your smartphone into a powerful safety accessory. Here's just a sampling of what's available.

TooLoud? gives answers to keep your hearing healthy. This app is useful for those who work in noise-filled environments such as heavy industrial and manufacturing facilities, farms, cafeterias and concerts. By using color to indicate noise levels, this app lets you know at a glance if noise levels have reached an unhealthy level.

OSHA's Heat Safety Tool uses available weather data to protect those who work long hours in hot conditions. The app displays the heat and safety risk to outdoor workers with reminders to drink enough fluids, schedule breaks and know what to do in an emergency. Available here.

EHS Audit provides more than 500 templates and checklists for a broad range of inspections, including OSHA, ISO, medical device standards, crane inspection and Canadian standards. Capture photos, video and audio; customize templates; generate reports in PDF, Word, Excel and CSV; and sync  reports to WikiChecklists for team collaboration.

HT NIOSH Lift performs NIOSH’s calculation in both metric and standard measurements to help you evaluate existing and proposed lifting conditions to determine the recommended weight limit for a specific job or task.

Adobe Ideas is a digital sketchbook that allows you to annotate photos so that management or service personnel can see what areas need work and what areas are in good order. You’ll save time and money, and eliminate doubt about the order and efficiency of your facility.

Earlier this year, during ASSE's webinar on “Improving Safety Through Mobile Technology,” Clint Wolfley, safety and health manager for URS Tank Operations in Hanford, WA, recommended that SH&E professionals looking to incorporate mobile technology in the workplace also consider these apps: Quick Office Pro, PDF Expert, iAuditor, iConstructSafe, Online MSDS, Professional Development CIH/CSP Quiz, Office Ergonomic Evaluation, Clinometer, Crosby Sling Calculator, SoundMeter and Safety Symbols Library.

Check iTunes or the Google Play Market for more details and availability for your device.