Lately, there’s been a widespread use of the term “the new normal.” It goes without saying that the way we live and work will never be the same in the wake of COVID-19 — but what will it look like?
Eventually people will return to work in their office. More and more companies will open up, and the essential businesses that maintained operation throughout this crisis will return to full capacity. But things aren’t expected to be just as they were before the outbreak, and for good reason.
With the threat of a second wave looming as the shelter in place mandates are lifted, businesses need to take serious measures to ensure worker safety while maintaining business continuity.
The Key to Success in a Post COVID-19 World
One of the keys to success in a post COVID-19 work environment is to make sure that anyone showing symptoms of COVID-19 is identified quickly, treated accordingly, and kept apart from other workers.
One of the most effective ways to identify symptomatic individuals is by doing temperature checks upon entering the building. With high fevers being a signature symptom of COVID-19, checking people’s temperatures as they enter your workplace is a great screening method. But manual temperature checks are slow, time-consuming, and only offer temporary solutions. Thanks to new technology, there’s a better way.
Thermal Camera Technology
While thermal cameras cannot detect the presence of a virus or infection, they can measure for elevated body temperature. Thermal cameras can measure people’s temperatures accurately and almost instantly from a safe distance that minimizes contact. These cameras have been utilized to create tools that organizations can utilize such as:
- Thermal camera systems. With the ability to scan multiple people at once, thermal camera system software can accurately detect temperatures of larger groups of people, rather than scan temperatures one by one. Best suited for buildings with high foot traffic, this type of system will help ensure a safe work environment with instant temperature detection and a responsive alert system.
- Temperature screening kiosks. Hands free kiosks can scan temperatures without the need for labor-intensive manual solutions or risky contact. Some even have advanced features like facial recognition, email notifications, reports, and monitoring capabilities. These features will quickly alert the proper personnel if someone’s temperature is above the threshold limit and will help organizations better keep records.
- Handheld thermal cameras. While handheld thermal and infrared cameras do require manual operation, they are portable and accurate. Handheld thermal cameras allow for quick and low-contact temperature scans and often can be configured with additional features for monitoring and alerting.
Organizations can set a temperature threshold so that an alert is triggered when an individual enters the building with a temperature above it. This allows for quick, accurate detection in office buildings, emergency rooms, doctor’s offices, airports, schools, and more. With instant alerts, everyone can take proper action.
The key to worker safety and business continuity in the wake of COVID-19 is having the right technology in place to screen for at-risk individuals. However, don’t make your organization choose between safety and a time-consuming, possibly inaccurate, temporary solution. Instead, invest in the proper solution, like a thermal camera system — and make your organization a key driver in flattening the virus curve.
Contact us to speak with an IVCi representative about your thermal camera needs.
