Jacar, the Navarrese company, has teamed up with RG Mape, a personal protection equipment (PPE) firm, to provide all its workers with the Canaria+ bracelet. The device warns of thermal risks thanks to its visual, audible and now also vibrating alarm.

The objective, according to the Navarrese company, is to prevent heat strokes on the construction site this summer. This autonomous and individual device warns of a thermal risk thanks to its visual, audible and now also vibrating alarm.

The incorporation of the Canaria+ bracelet is the latest in a series of actions implemented by the Navarrese family business to prevent occupational risks associated with high temperatures. Last summer, Jacar trained its staff on the consequences of extreme heat on construction workers, brought forward working hours to avoid the hours of greatest sun exposure, in agreement with the workers' representatives at certain construction sites, and set up a "high temperature committee" that informs the staff weekly, via WhatsApp, about the days on which the Navarre Institute of Occupational Health (INSL) foresees a risk of high temperatures. The construction huts were equipped with air conditioning, dispensers of 50+ sunscreen and cold water in 18-litre containers. In addition, white cotton long-sleeved T-shirts were provided to protect the skin from the sun and improve perspiration, as well as smoked UV-filter eye protection glasses.

In addition to the bracelets, which allow monitoring of body temperature and alert the worker of any excessive increase in temperature, we have added ventilated helmets with perforations to facilitate air circulation between the head and the helmet.

The Canaria+ bracelet measures body temperature and alerts the user of any abnormal rise in temperature so that they can take appropriate measures. This device “is especially useful for the Jacar staff, who are exposed to high temperatures”. “The device has been given to all workers, although this exposure is more important for façade and roof specialists. After receiving the sound and light warning of high temperature, they must go to a conditioned area and drink fresh water until their temperature is reduced”, specified RG Mape.

These actions are aligned with the objective of “adapting working conditions to high temperatures on construction sites”, one of the recommendations adopted by the Fundación Laboral de la Construcción and the sector's unions in the webinar organised by the employers' association in June, entitled 'Prevention against climate change in the construction sector' and in response to the regulatory requirements regarding environmental conditions in outdoor work, included in Royal Decree 4/2023. In this sense, Jacar is a member of the Occupational Health Commission of the Navarre Business Confederation (CEN), a commission whose fundamental objective “is to help business organizations and Navarrese companies to promote safety and health at work.”