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Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wearable Heat-Safety ‘Shield' Launches for U.S. Workers
From Battlefield to Breakroom: VigiLife Launches 'Shield' to Protect US Workers from Rising Heat Aptima, Inc. Dayton, OH, May 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As extreme heat continues to break records and endanger frontline workers, VigiLife today announced the national release of Shield — a next-generation heat-safety wearable built from battlefield technology and proven in some of the world's toughest environments. Engineered with support from partners including NextFlex, the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory; and Aptima, Inc., a Department of Defense contractor specializing in optimizing human performance — Shield brings real-time environmental sensing and advanced physiological tracking into the industrial workplace, delivering life-saving alerts before heat stress becomes dangerous. Aptima Ventures, which co-founded VigiLife and co-led its seed investment round, has been instrumental in Shield's development. From early R&D to lab testing and field validation, Aptima, Inc. has helped secure federal funding and provided engineering expertise. Shield has recently been tested by Aptima in Naval shipyards and in the U.S. Army's grueling Best Sapper Competition at Fort Leonard Wood. Shield is currently undergoing MIL-STD testing and is on track for intrinsically safe certification, enabling deployment in high-risk environments such as refineries, industrial sites, and explosive or flammable zones. From Special Ops to vulnerable supply chains in developing nations, the technology behind Shield has been tested and deployed with Texas construction crews, sugarcane workers, wildland firefighters, hazmat teams on Boeing and NASA's Commercial Crew ('Starliner') program, warfighters, and miners across the globe. One standout success story: Rogers-O'Brien Construction, a Texas-based firm that voluntarily adopted the tech amid record heat, reported zero heat-related illnesses and over $200,000 in cost savings after implementing the platform across its sites. 'Our team comes from a world where actionable data can be the difference between life and death,' said Zachary Kiehl, CEO & Co-Founder of VigiLife and former human performance lead at Aptima. 'Now we're using that same precision to protect workers in everyday jobs — from farms and factories to flight lines and construction sites.' "The innovation behind the Shield sensor represents a significant leap forward in wearable technology. By integrating advanced physiological tracking and real-time environmental sensing, Shield not only enhances worker safety but sets a new standard for occupational health,' said Michael J. Garrity, CEO of Aptima, Inc. 'This technology has demonstrated the potential to save lives and improve productivity across high-risk industries, and Aptima is proud to be part of the team at the forefront of this groundbreaking development." Shield is also backed by global heat-stress research leaders like La Isla Network, whose work across Latin America and South Asia has underscored the deadly toll of chronic heat exposure in global supply chains. Together, VigiLife and La Isla are advancing science-based, scalable solutions to ensure every worker is protected in a warming world. The launch comes at a pivotal moment. OSHA is preparing a federal heat standard, and economists project heat-related productivity losses could exceed $200 billion annually in the U.S. by 2030. Notably, Shield is designed, developed, and manufactured in the USA — offering a domestically produced solution amid growing concerns over global supply chains and tariffs. 'Heat is no longer just a weather issue — it's a workforce emergency,' added Kiehl. 'We've built a system that works in 110°F heat, on the tarmac, and in the trenches — all while respecting privacy and boosting health, safety, and productivity.' Kiehl emphasized that this 'Be well. Work well.' philosophy, enabled by technology and real-world testing, represents a win for workers, employers, insurers, and regulators alike — a shared solution at the intersection of well-being, performance, and policy. Shield is now available for pre-order through VigiLife's early access program, serving employers in construction, agriculture, energy, aviation, logistics, and other heat-exposed industries. The company is also actively partnering with insurers, researchers, and policymakers to make heat safety measurable, manageable, and scalable. Media Contact:Zachary 606-4354 Company overview: Born in Dayton, OH out of validated research in partnership with the USAF Air Force Research Laboratory, Aptima, Inc., and Lockheed Martin, VigiLife is working to become the global standard for protecting workers from health & safety risks while serving as the intelligence layer enterprises rely on to ensure safety, productivity, and sustainability. By harnessing real-time physiological data, environmental sensing, and predictive analytics, VigiLife transforms risk management from reactive to proactive—empowering businesses to prevent harm before it happens and streamline operations across several 'connected worker' use cases (e.g., occupational heat stress). VigiLife's technology has not only saved lives but also driven operational excellence, regulatory compliance, and responsible labor practices with leading private and public sector organizations. In a world of rising environmental challenges, VigiLife's mission is to protect and enrich the lives of those at risk by ensuring that vigilance over life is the foundation of every industry it serves. Attachment Aptima, Inc. CONTACT: Maya Plesset Aptima, Inc. 8583863332 maya@
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former Elon Musk worker challenges Susan Collins for US Senate
Feb. 14—Republican U.S. Senator Susan Collins has her first challenger for the 2026 election cycle — Phillip Rench, a former senior engineer for Elon Musk's SpaceX who lives in Waterboro. Rench is a 37-year-old board member of the Maine Space Corp., a quasi-governmental nonprofit created by the state Legislature to establish sites to launch small vehicles and satellites into low orbit. He is challenging Collins, who is seeking her sixth term, as an independent, according to paperwork filed with the Federal Election Commission. Rench, who is originally from southern Maine and owns Ossipee Hill Farm and Observatory, said in an email Friday that he was not ready to discuss his candidacy. Rench and his wife returned to Maine in November of 2019, according to a biography on his farm website. Before that, Rench lived in South Texas, where he worked as a senior engineer at SpaceX's Boca Chica Launch site. According to his LinkedIn page, Rench contributed to the success of the Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy and Commercial Crew programs during his five years at SpaceX, where he also managed command, control and instrumentation at Launch Pad 39A. He later became site director of the Starship Program in Boca Chica, Texas. Once the pandemic hit and highlighted the fragility of the supply chains and food security, the couple began growing their own food. And then in the spring of 2022, the couple established an observatory. Rench joined the 14-member Maine Space Corp. board in June of 2023, after being nominated by Gov. Janet Mills. Collins, 72, is expected to face a tough election cycle, especially with Donald Trump returning to the White House. She has had a tortured relationship with the man who has remade the Republican party in his own image. She has not supported any of his three campaigns for president, most recently writing in former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley for president last fall. But Collins has navigated this dynamic before, having warded off a challenge from former Maine Speaker of the House Sarah Gideon in 2020 — an expensive campaign in which Democrats were riding a wave of resistance to Trump and outrage over Collin's pivotal vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court, which helped remake the court majority and end federal abortion protections under Roe v. Wade. Despite being down in polling before the 2020 election, Collins went on to win by 9 points, even as Trump lost the statewide tally by 9 points to Joe Biden. And Collins, who has been delivering key votes in support of Trump's controversial cabinet nominees, such as Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard, is beginning the cycle with a big fundraising advantage. Through December, her campaign committee reported nearly $2.7 million in cash on hand. Collins has criticized Musk's effort to slash federal spending. So far, no other candidates have emerged. Gov. Janet Mills would not rule out a run when asked by the Press Herald in December. Mills is in her final two years as governor because of term limits. Copy the Story Link
