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Satyendra Pathak
Doha
Minister of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs HE Issa bin Saad al Jaffali al Nuaimi unveiled the Qatari-patented smart safety vest on the sidelines of the Second Conference of Occupational Safety and Health in Doha on Saturday.
Invented and designed by Qatar's Ali Hassan al Rashid, commander of security systems and technologies in Lekhwiya (Internal Security Force), the highly innovative smart safety vest will ensure safety of migrant workers especially during the peak summer.
Speaking to media on the occasion, the minister said the jacket is part of Qatar's strategy to ensure maximum protection and safety for expatriate workers engaged in different projects of the country.
Owned by Qatar's Internal Security Force (ISF), the jacket is manufactured in China and then shipped to Qatar.
In an exclusive interview with Qatar Tribune, Rashid said that it would be mandatory for all firms to provide their site workers with the jacket especially during the summer season.
"Today is the official launch of the vest. Companies can now place their orders with us about the quantities they want. We area in a position to meet any number of orders within a month," Rashid said.
Providing details about the vest, he said,"The main feature of the jacket is the cooling system which will keep a worker cool despite the scorching heat during peak summer."
The smart jacket also contains a chip that gives signals indicating the condition of the worker if exposed to any risk such as excessive stress or increased heart rate or abnormal breathing, he said.
The sensors in the smart jacket give a warning to the control room that shows the worker's condition, he said, adding that it would also contain a tracking system so that the worker's location can be easily identified.
The smart jacket also includes voice dialing, operates via solar power and does not need to be recharged from any power source.
Rashid said the price of smart jacket would vary from QR350 to QR1,000 depending on the options companies choose for their workers.
"The base model with just the cooling system will not cost more than QR350. Jackets with options line biometrics reader, tracking chips and other facilities will be available for higher prices," he said.
While it will be mandatory for all workers working in scorching heat to wear jacket with cooling system, Rashid said, the jacket with additional facilities would be optional.