Wenco International Mining Systems Ltd., a wholly owned Canadian subsidiary of Japan's Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., has acquired Australian fatigue monitoring wearable maker SmartCap Technologies Pty. Ltd.

The acquisition dated May 1 enables Wenco to enhance its safety solutions with SmartCap's signature technology that assesses real-time fatigue levels and detects microsleeps in operators at industrial sites, Hitachi Construction Machinery said.

The Tokyo-based construction equipment manufacturer did not disclose details of the investment.

The company and Wenco had been engaged in years of efforts to streamline mining operations with safety as a priority, which resulted in acquiring SmartCap, known for its device that can be integrated into headgear to monitor brainwaves for fatigue.

Operators, such as power shovel and dump truck drivers, at mines and other industrial sites, must perform long hours of repetitive work while paying close attention to their surroundings. A drop in their concentration or dozing off due to fatigue could lead to a serious accident, Wenco said in a press release.

The SmartCap device has over 5,000 users globally in mining, trucking and other industries, according to Hitachi Construction Machinery.

(NNA/Kyodo)

==Kyodo

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