PepsiCo to boost wearable technology use after Frito-Lay workers see injury reductions – Supply Chain Dive

Dive Brief:

Frito-Lay's need to fill 5,000 positions across its U.S. manufacturing sites to meet heightened demand has underscored the importance of keeping frontline employees healthy and able to work.

Using wearables is one way to do that. Efforts to mitigate COVID-19 spread at facilities at the onset of the pandemic drove increased interest in wearable technology, like devices that notify workers when they're too close together.

The Reflex wearable device recognizes improper moving and lifting techniques and alerts the user with a vibration. Data from the devices allowed management at Frito-Lay's Kern Plant in California to determine what areas of the facility frequently featured improper movements. Bakery processing team employees were performing an average of 33 repetitive twists and bends daily, according to a Kinetic report.

"Workstation space limitations during ingredient changeovers were causing a significant increase in incorrect twists and bends," Kinetic said. "Also, when taking weight samples, operators were continuously having to overreach towards the middle of the conveyor."

The wearable device data led management to retrofit equipment and modify workspaces to reduce worker risk. They also focused their coaching for alternate lifting and turning techniques on bakery processing employees.

Employees prefer wearable devices as a coaching system rather than relying on a supervisor's direction for proper lifting technique, the Kinetic study said. This is because it empowers them to talk with management about how a facility could be improved.

"After receiving an alert, employees stop and think about whether there is something they could do differently," Gilligan said. "They then initiate conversations with us about why they have to adopt a high risk posture, and how we could redesign the workspace or the process. So you've got culture change happening at the same time as behavior change."

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PepsiCo to boost wearable technology use after Frito-Lay workers see injury reductions - Supply Chain Dive