{"id":18924,"date":"2023-06-29T18:50:58","date_gmt":"2023-06-30T01:50:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/contractors-swap-hard-hats-for-helmets\/"},"modified":"2023-06-29T18:51:00","modified_gmt":"2023-06-30T01:51:00","slug":"contractors-swap-hard-hats-for-helmets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/contractors-swap-hard-hats-for-helmets\/","title":{"rendered":"Contractors swap hard hats for helmets"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Hard hats are synonymous with construction. From emojis to motivational posters to icons like Bob the Builder, the quickest way to identify construction workers has been via their brightly colored headgear.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

But, some contractors have begun a shift in the name of safety: swapping hard hats for helmets, which they say better protect workers.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

“It’s interesting that in construction, we have an innovative bunch of problem solvers who are out there everyday solving issues,\u201d said Brian Jones, chief operating officer for Lexington, Kentucky-based Gray Construction. \u201cBut with the hard hat, the first plastic one was 1960, and it’s largely the same today. So 60 years later, [we\u2019ve had] zero innovation when it comes to the hard hat.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to Gray, major players in the industry, such as Clark and DPR, made the shift to helmets years ago. Despite some worker resistance to a new type of personal protective equipment, construction leaders who have made the switch have said it was the right decision, and are now mandating their use from workers, trade partners and subcontractors.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

What\u2019s the difference?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

\u201cJust like technology has afforded great leaps in cordless tools, laser levels and robotics, the hard hat as a personal protection tool has also seen great improvements in design, suspensions, materials \u2014 leather, aluminum, plastic and carbon fiber \u2014 and more,\u201d said Greg Sizemore, vice president of health, safety, environment and workforce development for Associated Builders and Contractors.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Traditional hard hats are Type I safety compliant: They protect workers from falling objects landing directly on top of the wearer\u2019s head. Type II compliant helmets, on the other hand, also have padding to protect from impact on the sides of the head, according to the <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

This makes helmets ideal protection against falls, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Falls, slips and trips <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>killed 390 construction workers<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> in 2021, more than any other cause, according to the most recent data available.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Protecting the head from both the sides and the front can make a big difference when a worker falls, by lessening the blow that could cause a traumatic brain injury, according to the CDC.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Often, head injuries result from slips, trips or falls from 6 feet or less \u2014 meaning they could happen to anyone on the jobsite, regardless of the work they perform, according to Ryan Barnes founder and CEO at Studson, a Lake Oswego, Oregon-based helmet provider.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Lateral impacts to the side of the head \u2014 such as those from falls or sports activities \u2014 can cause rotational accelerations in the brain, which can lead to concussions, according to the CDC. Type II headgear can help prevent that.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>November report from NIOSH<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> published on the CDC website found the construction industry has the greatest number of both fatal and nonfatal work-related TBIs among U.S. industries. From 2003 to 2010, 2,210 construction workers died as a result of a TBI (or about 2.6 per 100,000 full time equivalent workers).\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNow the transition to the hard helmet from the hard hat is gaining ground, and it couldn\u2019t have come at a better time,\u201d Sizemore said.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Making the change<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

Gray Construction began the process of swapping its hard hats to helmets about four years ago, when Jones attended an event in Washington, D.C.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

There, Jones said he heard an owner of a structural engineering company claim that, had a helmet been used at the time of a jobsite collapse, it could have prevented a fatality or traumatic brain injury.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThat was so impactful for me,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Construction helmets currently cost more than hard hats, due to the smaller number of suppliers, Jones said. With time, he predicts costs will go down, which will lead to more adoption.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Bethesda, Maryland-based Clark Construction started shifting to helmets in 2017, which it claims made it the first general contractor to do so.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n