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Startup Canada: Top 100 startups features Fatigue Science

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Fatigue Science has been featured in Startup Canada’s list of 1000 startups along side some of the top start ups from the creative, education and technology industries.

For Fatigue Science the Startup Canada piece was an opportunity to talk about the story behind the development of the most validated fatigue measurement technology available in the world – the Readiband.

In the article, Pat Byrne Fatigue Science’s VP and founder, talks about the two years he spent traveling all over North America to speak with researchers, sleep labs, universities and members of the military in order to understand what technology was available to measure sleep and fatigue. Byrne then realized that he could use the existing technology to create an entirely new platform to measure sleep and fatigue in the workplace – that was when the Readiband was born.

Byrne also gives his advice for other startups in the article saying that:

My number one piece of advice as an entrepreneur and startup founder is to be passionate about what it is you are trying to accomplish with your business. Work hard and learn as much as you can from people you connect with as your business grows.

Why the answer to reducing truck driver fatigue is with evidence based data

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On July 1, 2013 the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) new federal regulations designed to reduce truck driver fatigue took effect. The new federal regulations see an 11-hour limit on truckers’ driving day and a 34-hour rest period each week that would require drivers to be off two consecutive nights.

Driver fatigue is a serious problem in North America, with studies showing that 30 percent of fatal commercial truck crashes are fatigue related.

The DOT estimates that the rule will help prevent 1,400 truck crashes, 560 injuries and 19 deaths per year, while affecting only the less than 15 percent of truckers who drive the most hours.

In a profession that has more on-the-job deaths than any other in the U.S., why does the transportation industry still not get it?

Instead of being worried about reducing driver fatigue from our roads, it seems as though the transportation industry is more worried about loss of productivity and a loss of money.

Earlier this month, the American Trucking Association appealed the regulations arguing that longer rest breaks and reworked freight networks may reduce productivity by 3 percent, translating into $18 billion in additional costs. The appeal was quickly dismissed.

But it’s not just the association with this view in mind, in an interview with commercial truck drivers, Ben Kamisar found that in situations where shipping delays create unexpected downtime, this can potentially force them into restarts they’d rather not take so they flip their shifts to avoid that scenario. Because for truck drivers “when the wheels aren’t turning, you aren’t earning”.

The only way to reduce driver fatigue is to use evidence based technology to optimize alertness

The assumptions behind U.S. Department of Transportation’s new regulations are that the longer drivers are behind the wheel the greater their risk of having an accident and by giving drivers more time off they will get more rest. However, with drivers finding it acceptable to switch shifts to meet the demands of shipping, we are still going to be a long way from reducing driver fatigue from our roads.

People can be mentally fatigued and be at a greatly increased accident risk, yet not even feel fatigued.  Therefore, drivers will not realize they are fatigued until it is too late. This is why fatigue is such an insidious hazard.

New research published in 2013 by the Australian National Truck Accident Research Centre (ANTARC) studied all 461 truck accidents from 2011 in Australia and concluded that 68% of all fatigue related incidents occurred within 250 km and 85% of the fatigue related incidents occurred within 500 km of the beginning of their journey, not the end. ANTARC’s conclusion was that drivers were not getting the sleep they needed on their off days and came to work fatigued and unfit for duty.

Further, a study by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)  found that the very nature of 24-hr operational environments superimposed against human circadian physiology all but guarantees the systematic production of fatigue. As such, valid and reliable methods of predicting compromised performance capacity could be valuable as a means of preventing and mitigating fatigue-induced safety risks in applied settings.

Just like the transportation industry can track the amount of hours and miles a driver does, by using our  validated fatigue management solutions (Readiband and FAST) the industry could roster drivers to ensure they’re getting enough rest in-between shifts and be able to track the actual sleep of drivers get to ensure they are not getting behind the wheel fatigued.

Scientifically validated fatigue management solutions for the transportation industry

Our scientifically validated technology has provided companies in the transport industry with the data to understand how fatigue may be affecting the safety of their on-the-road employees and helping transportation agencies make decisions based on objective data.

By using Readiband and FAST the transportation industry can:

  • Give drivers the opportunity to visualize their real-time effectiveness scores directly on the Readiband
  • Collect sleep data from drivers using the Readiband
  • Easily visualize and quantify drivers and areas of increased fatigue risk with online reports from the Readiband data
  • Create rosters that optimize employee alertness using FAST
  • Identify specific rosters that will contribute to high levels of fatigue using FAST

Our technology enabled Australian transport company, Queensland Rail, to reduce fatigue risk by 39%

Queensland Rail used Readiband to assess employee fatigue levels and determine times of increased accident risk in train control centres. As a result of the strategies implemented from the Readiband findings, one train control centre increased employee sleep by a full hour, which translated to a 39% reduction in fatigue risk.

Why we need to stop using the term human error in accident investigations

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Vancouver airport near miss

In April 2013, human error by an airport controller at Vancouver Airport mixed up the ID’s of two planes almost causing a serious accident. Luckily, the mix-up was solved and no one was killed. When investigating the cause of the incident at Vancouver Airport, the Transport Safety Board of Canada (TSBC), used our scientifically validated Fatigue Avoidance Scheduling Tool (FAST) to identify fatigue as the cause for human error. By reviewing the airport controllers actual schedule, FAST was able to identify that the controller did not obtain sufficient sleep before their shift and was therefore fatigued at the time of the incident.

By using objective data, TSBC now understands exactly what caused the human error and that ‘fatiguing schedules’ can greatly increase the likelihood of human error occurring.

So why are we still only referring to ‘human error’ as a cause?

In many accidents, investigators would run a series of investigations to establish that it was human error that was the cause.

A September 2012 study by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) proves that self-reported studies, similar to the ones conducted to establish human error, are not accurate. The results showed that people do not normally feel fatigued until they lose 30% of their reaction time due to sleep loss. That is equivalent to the reaction time of people who are legally drunk at 0.08% blood alcohol.

Objective data is needed for 24/7 organizations to improve safety

In order for high-risk organizations such as aviation, air traffic control, healthcare or nuclear industry where reducing accident risk is imperative to the health, safety and wellbeing of their employees, objective data must be used to identify the root cause of human error in accidents.

The most accurate and validated way to improve safety is with our fatigue management technology – FAST and Readiband. This software is the “officially sanctioned” US Department of Defence fatigue analysis system.

FAST used to pinpoint the root of human error

FAST is our user-friendly scientifically validated software that has been developed for schedulers and planners to identify areas of fatigue risk in employee rosters. The data can then be used for objective comparisons and optimal schedules may be selected for proposed work periods or mission critical events. FAST is used by major accident investigators in North America and Australia including The US National Transportation Safety Board,  The US Federal Railroad Administration and the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.

Readiband is a proactive strategy to improve safety

On the other hand, Readiband can be used as a proactive strategy for organizations to improve workplace safety.  By wearing the Readiband, sleep data is collected and summarized in clear visual reports containing fatigue analytics that allow administrators to manage fatigue risk.

Former English soccer coach suggests fatigue could be reason for lack of success in international tournaments

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International soccer fans are already counting down to the world’s most watched sporting event; FIFA’s 2014 World Cup. The four-year build up to the tournament is huge, and failure to perform can lead to great disappointment for coaches, players, sponsors and fans. Players will train hard and play hard, but will that be enough? Former England national coach, Fabio Capello, recently spoke with FIFA.com about the team’s lack of success on the international stage. In the interview, he suggested that English soccer players were simply tired:

“…They’re the least fresh of any of the competing national sides, because their league doesn’t have a break.” He says, continuing to add: “It’s like when you’re driving a car: if you stop halfway to put fuel in then you’ll definitely get where you want to go, but if you don’t then there’s always the chance you’ll be running on empty before you reach your goal.”

A recent article on Sportpulse.net cites the interview, supporting Capello’s claim by adding:

“In the past, top Premier League managers such as Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger have spoken about the need for a winter break. They believe that the lack of a break hampers English teams in the latter stages of the Champions League, as well as for international tournaments.”

The writer goes on to suggest that “…perhaps England need to do away with their packed winter schedule of games and find space for a winter break. Otherwise, as Capello says, they will always find themselves handicapped heading into a tournament.”

But what if a ‘winter break’ isn’t a feasible solution for England’s players? Better analysis and a look at their scheduling could provide a real solution to optimizing the team’s performance at tournament time. Fatigue Science’s Readiband and FAST (fatigue avoidance scheduling tool) is the only scientifically validated technology to do just that.

National soccer programs, olympic committees, the national hockey league, the national football league and Australian football league are already using Fatigue Science’s Readibands and FAST to reduce fatigue and improve player performance – maybe the English national soccer team should too?

New Swedish research on the relationship between sleep and fatigue is misleading and may be harmful

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On Friday August 2, new Swedish research conducted by the Stress Research Institute of Stockholm University, found that there may be little-to-no relation between how much sleep people get at night and how fatigued they feel.

The research to be released in late 2013, suggests that the number of hours slept is of much less importance in determining how a person functions throughout the day. It is actually genetically conditioned and dependent on age and health.

However, the findings from the study are not only misleading but in fact could be very harmful to the way the pubic perceives fatigue and how much sleep people actually need to be at peak alertness and effectiveness.

Swedish researchers asked 6000 people how long they slept and how fatigued they felt, but they could not find a relationship between how long people slept and how fatigued they felt.

Personally I don’t find this surprising, as it has been known for decades that self-reported sleep and self-reported fatigue are not very accurate.

In 2004, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania published a comprehensive study where they measured subjects’ actual sleep and actual fatigue levels using clinical level objective tests.  Their conclusion was that there was a large difference between what people report and how they actually perform on clinical testing.

Further, in September 2012, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) published the largest study of its kind where they measured the actual sleep of 178 flight attendants using highly accurate, clinical level Readiband’s.  The flight attendants also took over 10,000 reaction tests.  The FAA was then able to correlate how sleep affects reaction time or fatigue.   The results showed that people do not normally feel fatigued until they lose 30% of their reaction time due to sleep loss. That is equivalent to the reaction time of people who are legally drunk at 0.08% blood alcohol.

This is why fatigue is such an insidious hazard. People can be mentally fatigued and be at a greatly increased accident risk, yet not even feel fatigued.  The Swedish research is simply misleading and reinforces the out dated notion that sleep does not affect our fatigue levels.

The National Sleep Foundation says it best:

“People underestimate how tired they are and think that they can stay awake by sheer force of will.” “This is a risky misconception,” says Thomas Balkin, Ph.D., Chairman of the National Sleep Foundation.

Would there be 1.9 million fatigue-related crashes or near misses if people were good at assessing their own ability to drive when fatigued?

Sleep is critical to human health, safety and performance.

In March the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared that “insufficient sleep is a public health epidemic.” Which is why the public needs to better understand the critical link between sleep and fatigue, instead of listening to highly published inaccurate research.

Press release: Fatigue Science now the global leader in fatigue management technology

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Vancouver, BC – August 2, 2013 – Fatigue Science, a fatigue management technology company based in Vancouver, now offers the most comprehensive, valid and scientifically accurate fatigue management technology in the world. Under orders from the US Congress, the US Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA), multi-year study, validated Fatigue Science’s Readiband and Fatigue Avoidance Scheduling Tool (FAST).

Pat Byrne, internationally recognized sleep and fatigue expert and founder of Fatigue Science says “we are thrilled that our technology continues to receive further validation, in addition to the independent validations by US Department of Transportation, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research at the U.S. Army Medical Research Development Command and the Kettering Sleep Disorder Centre.”

“We are proud to offer our clients the most accurate fatigue management technology in the world that allows them to measure, manage and mitigate their workplace fatigue” said Byrne.

The latest FAA study validates the SAFTE model used in Fatigue Science’s Readiband and Fatigue Avoidance Scheduling Tool (FAST). The FAA said, “the present study utilized actual sleep/wake/work data from a broadly representative sample of professional cabin crew to demonstrate clear relationships between performance effectiveness predicted by the SAFTE model and objective performance outcomes in the field.”  The FAA study involved over 10,000 field reaction tests and compared them to cabin crew sleep patterns.

Fatigue Science’s technology is used by research agencies, mining companies, transportation companies, governments, military organizations and professional sports teams globally. Including organizations such as Harvard Medical School, Australian Transport Safety Bureau, Rio Tinto, Colombian Air Force and the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League.

Globally, fatigue is a major contributor to workplace accidents in all 24/7 operations and is a significant issue in professional sports.  “We are proud our technology allows companies to easily measure the sleep, fatigue and accident risk of employees to prevent fatigue related accidents while respecting the privacy of the employee” said Byrne.

Fatigue Science’s FAST software received further validation when it was used by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada in a retrospective analysis to identify fatigue in an air traffic controller as a contributing factor in a near-miss incident at Vancouver Airport.

Download a PDF version of the press release