The Treasury Department’s Bureau of Engraving and Printing has announced that in-office employees will be equipped with contact-tracing devices to help slow the spread of COVID19.
Employees will be able to wear a small clip on their clothing that sends out alerts when social distancing is violated, and notifies management with protocols being broken. The data will also allow administrators to calculate where potential outbreaks started to prevent further spreading.The contact tracing devices were developed by Triax Technologies, a Connecticut-based tech company that specializes in IoT and proximity devices.
“Mitigating the possible spread of COVID-19 in the facilities has presented BEP with a number of challenges and delays,” wrote Bureau officials. “Contact tracing will help minimize risk to our workforce as we move through the next phases of the reopening plan and strategically reintroduce employees back into the facilities.”
The contract between the BEP and Triax will take place for a full year, and the results of the trial run will determine if the partnership will be extended further. But Bureau officials hope that the pandemic restrictions will ease up by that time, allowing employees to safely return to work. There is currently no specific information available about who specifically will be required to wear the devices, but the Bureau stated that Triax would be able to provide roughly 1,000 within 15 days of accepting the agreement.
