The report by the AI company Cortexica claims the vast majority (84%) of businesses operating in a high-risk environment lost money from injuries due to PPE non-compliance in the last year.
According to the research, almost a third (30%) of those businesses lost more than £250,000 and 5% lost more than £1m.
It also found that around 29% of workplace injuries last year in companies operating in high-risk environments could have been prevented through the proper use of PPE.
And injury claims, injured and absent workers and the purchase of new equipment are the biggest costs for companies following PPE failure.
The report also found 84% of businesses surveyed still rely on manually checking employees for PPE compliance.
But more than three quarters (78%) said they also believe that AI systems would reduce the risk of accidents by flagging up potential issues.
And almost two thirds (64%) said they intend to invest in AI and machine vision systems to monitor employees PPE within the next five years.
“Personal Protection Equipment compliance is something that businesses operating in high-risk environments have to get right, and the report highlights why” said Cortexica Chief Executive, Iain McCready.
“Not only do they have a duty of care to their employees, but they need to protect themselves from the financial consequences of injuries in the workplace.
“To our surprise, the report highlights many businesses are still manually monitoring PPE compliance, even with a number of industry-ready AI applications on the market that can reduce these risks,” added Mr McCready.
