The corona crisis requires innovative solutions in order to be able to return somewhat to the ‘normal’ state of affairs. For example, Ford hopes that a buzzing bracelet can play a crucial role for its factory workers.
In order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus as much as possible, we should keep a distance of one and a half meters from others in the Netherlands. Something similar applies in the United States; there six feet (over 1.8 meters) are prescribed. In practice, this turns out not to be easy under some circumstances. This can also be difficult in a car factory, so that is why Ford is now testing with a bracelet for its employees that buzzes when they come within a radius of 1.8 meters from each other. That reports Bloomberg. These bracelets are currently being tested by a group of volunteers at the Ford plant in Plymouth, Michigan.
Incidentally, it is not yet clear when they will be applied in practice. After all, Ford has not yet communicated a new date when it hopes to resume production in the US. On March 31, it was announced that the restart had been delayed indefinitely. Ford is monitoring developments around the virus and may not give a green light again until early May. In Europe, the beginning of May is also considered to be the period in which the factories are likely to resume (partly) production. It is not yet clear whether such bracelets will also be used here.