Drivers and Barriers to the Use of Wearable Sensing Devices for Real-Time Safety Risk Assessment in Construction

10 pages•Published: July 23, 2025

Mehdi Torbat Esfahani, Tulio Sulbaran and Ibukun Awolusi

Abstract

Construction workers face numerous hazards and risks on job sites, necessitating comprehensive risk assessment methods to safeguard their safety and health. Traditional risk assessment approaches in the construction industry often rely on historical data and periodic assessments, potentially overlooking real-time conditions and dynamic environmental changes. This paper addresses this challenge by examining wearable sensing devices (WSDs) integration to provide continuous, real-time data for construction safety risk assessment. This study employs a systematic literature review to synthesize insights from existing academic research on integrating WSDs for safety risk assessment in construction. It aims to elucidate the benefits, challenges, and implementation considerations of incorporating WSDs into established risk management frameworks. Additionally, the study utilizes scientometric analysis to categorize key drivers and barriers to WSD integration while uncovering trends and relationships within the field. The study’s results indicate that key drivers, including technological advancements, real-time monitoring, and hazard identification, alongside barriers such as cost, user acceptance, data privacy, training requirements, and integration with existing systems. The scientometric analysis further reveals trends such as real-time hazard detection and worker safety awareness advancements while highlighting challenges like data management and integration across applications. The broader impact is the improvement of risk assessment efficiency and precision, promoting proactive safety risk management strategies, and ensuring personnel safety in construction.

Keyphrases: real time monitoring, risk assessment, wearable sensing devices

In: Wesley Collins, Anthony J. Perrenoud and John Posillico (editors). Proceedings of Associated Schools of Construction 61st Annual International Conference, vol 6, pages 510-519.

Links:	https://easychair.org/publications/paper/tbQ5
	https://doi.org/10.29007/rlnj

BibTeX entry

@inproceedings{ASC2025:Drivers_Barriers_Use_Wearable,
  author    = {Mehdi Torbat Esfahani and Tulio Sulbaran and Ibukun Awolusi},
  title     = {Drivers and Barriers to the Use of Wearable Sensing Devices for Real-Time Safety Risk Assessment in Construction},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of Associated Schools of Construction 61st Annual International Conference},
  editor    = {Wesley Collins and Anthony J. Perrenoud and John Posillico},
  series    = {EPiC Series in Built Environment},
  volume    = {6},
  publisher = {EasyChair},
  bibsource = {EasyChair, https://easychair.org},
  issn      = {2632-881X},
  url       = {/publications/paper/tbQ5},
  doi       = {10.29007/rlnj},
  pages     = {510-519},
  year      = {2025}}

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