Indy Company Testing Health Security Technology
As some Indiana companies look to reopen, employers are exploring ways to verify employees aren’t showing symptoms of COVID-19 as they return to the workplace. An Indianapolis-based security company is partnering with Hoosier businesses to test new health security systems to screen workers when they clock in. Hoosier Security says demand for such systems is high, but the market is saturated with equipment that may not deliver on its promises, such as spotting an employee with a fever.
President Armando Perez explained to Business of Health Reporter Kylie Veleta how his company is testing security health technology.
“When COVID really started to impact businesses, the security industry responded by starting to promote a lot of different thermal solutions, to use cameras to take temperatures. And we immediately noticed a problem with how they were doing it in that that equipment is not designed for that use case; it’s designed to find hot spots in electronics. It’s very different than taking someone’s temperature accurately,” said Perez.
Perez says they also started to see issues arise with HIPAA and the National Defense Authorization Act regarding the use of such technology.
“A lot of industries have a tendency to jump into new things without fully vetting them. We are uncomfortable putting our name behind anything that hasn’t been tested and used in the field. So…after narrowing it down from about a dozen to two different (health screening) solutions, we launched a beta program. We reached out to partners and companies within the Midwest, generally speaking, and had them agree to help us test this and in exchange, they would give us information for a case study.”
After researching a variety of health security systems, Hoosier Security began to study two solutions. One of them is the Access Control System, which can take two different types of temperature readings in individuals, but Perez notes it does not detect a fever.
The other solution is a thermal imaging system that uses a thermal camera that is designed to detect the presence of a human being. Using artificial intelligence and machine learning to detect the temperature of the person coming across the camera. However, Perez says the technology has been problematic.
“That’s where this beta program has really been really eye-opening because we see a lot of companies buying that equipment at full retail and we just know for a fact that it’s not going to work as intended.”
Perez says Hoosier Security is a regional security integrator, taking electronic devices to provide a higher level of security by making different systems work together to create greater synergy for businesses.