How can BLE beacons improve worker safety and asset visibility in hazardous areas? XB Beacons can improve worker and asset visibility in hazardous areas by acting as fixed BLE reference points within a real-time location system (RTLS). Where each beacon is positioned affects how the system can show whether workers and assets are in the correct room, zone, stairwell, muster point, entrance or equipment area. When GPS (Global Positioning System) isn’t available, such as indoors or within complex industrial environments, a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)-based RTLS offers a reliable alternative for real-time personnel and asset tracking. This article explains how XB Beacon positioning enhances RTLS accuracy, enabling improved worker safety and asset visibility in hazardous areas. For detailed guidance on BLE beacon spacing, RSSI behaviour, trilateration principles and indoor/outdoor setup, read our practical BLE beacon […]

How does electronic mustering strengthen offshore emergency response? It provides clear visibility and accountability during an incident, helping operators confirm personnel safety quickly and respond with confidence. In an offshore facility emergency, mustering comes down to two critical questions:  Who is onboard, and where are they? Can you get them to safety quickly and prove it afterwards? Electronic mustering, linked to a live electronic Personnel on Board (e-POB) system and supported by a Real-Time Location System (RTLS), gives offshore operators the visibility and evidence they need. It provides real-time awareness in the control room and a defensible record after drills or incidents. It turns emergency response from assumption into certainty.  Offshore installations like FPSOs don’t always sit neatly under rules like SOLAS or the IMO MODU Code. These frameworks were originally developed for ships and mobile offshore drilling units, so how they apply […]

Why does the iTAG X-Range use varied tracking tag types instead of one universal device? Because industrial sites have very different: Safety risks Layouts Infrastructure constraints. One tag cannot efficiently cover them all. A Practical RTLS Design Approach for Hazardous and Industrial Areas Designing an effective Real-Time Location System (RTLS) for hazardous and industrial environments is not a single “best” technology. It is about finding the right balance between functionality, connectivity, and infrastructure demands for each use case. The monitoring of personnel movements and safety is then kept consistent within a user-friendly platform, ensuring reliable location information across the site. Our iTAG X-Range portfolio is intentionally designed as a progressive hybrid technology range for RTLS deployments in hazardous areas. It is built around different site conditions and use cases. It allows sites to choose: The […]

Every product we build at Extronics starts with a challenge worth solving. For the iTAG X40, that obstacle was clear from the outset: How do you design for long-range connectivity and accurate worker tracking in hazardous areas, and make it work reliably? The Philosophy Behind the iTAG X40 The iTAG X40 was developed to give connected workers freedom to move across large, hazardous sites while staying visible and safe. We recognized the need to expand our range of connectivity options to support a wider range of infrastructure demands and match the expectations of the market. As part of our Real Time Location Systems (RTLS) offering, the iTAG X40 supplies real-time insights on personnel movements; improving site awareness, safety, and efficiency. LoRaWAN (Long Range Wide Area Network) was the natural choice for our iTAG X40, its […]

Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons have become a valuable technology for adding location tracking capabilities to your hazardous areas. With the right planning and configuration, BLE beacons can provide accurate indoor and outdoor location. This allows organisations to cost-effectively add location tracking of personnel and assets whilst reducing the total cost of ownership.  This article provides practical guidance on deploying BLE beacons to achieve optimal tracking performance. It covers indoor and outdoor setup considerations, best practices for beacon placement, and configuration tips for maximizing location accuracy.  What is the difference between a beacon and anchor?  For trilateration purposes it is recommended to use beacons. A beacon is simply a term used to describe a fixed beacon that is contributing to a tag’s position. An anchor is typically the term used when discussing Wirepas Mesh networks.   […]

Man down technology, also known as fall detection, is designed to automatically detect when a person falls and send an alert for help. This technology is integrated into devices like the iTAG X-Range to protect lone workers and workers in hazardous environments. When a fall or sudden change in orientation is detected, the device will initiate an alarm sequence, vibrating, flashing and beeping to alert the user. If the alarm is not cancelled by the user within 30 seconds, the device transmits an emergency alert to monitoring software or personnel. How Man Down Detection Works Man down detection relies on accelerometers to monitor acceleration on three axes and detect the forces involved in a fall. When a fall occurs, the accelerometer detects a sudden downward acceleration followed by an abrupt stop when the person hits […]