The companies said they are advancing interoperability of Hexagon's Xalt Connected Worker software and its real-time data with RealWear's HMT line-up of wearable and hands-free, voice-enabled headsets.

The Hexagon Xalt | Mobility cloud-based enterprise software platform has been designed for users to quickly create mobile workflows to solve daily challenges. The technology connects to an existing enterprise application, systems and sensors in a single app to offer the needed data.

"No longer is disparate data a vexing problem," Hexagon and RealWear said.

"Through this approach, maintenance teams can now have real-time access to current work orders, maintenance history, associated engineering documentation, manufacturers' schematics, permits, safety documentation and best practices. Data integrity, smoother operations and dramatically reduced administration costs are ensured with low initial overhead."

The addition of RealWear's voice-enabled headset helps with operational efficiency as well, as workers can troubleshoot issues in real-time and use two-way video to remotely perform live inspections.

It also allows plant workers to increase operational efficiency while minimising possible hazards.

"Utilising the ‘Maintenance Execution 2.0' package, workers can leverage hands-free technology end-to-end throughout their work processes," the statement said.

"All necessary data can be provided to the worker at the required time and place, while increasing communication and collaboration between operations and maintenance," optimising ‘time on tool,' and improving metrics like Mean Time to Repair (MTTR), First Time Fix Rates (FTFR) and overall reliability.

Near-miss reporting and notifications in real-time is also possible, offering greater visibility into plant conditions to permit preventative actions and increase traceability.