Industry leaders explain how Bluetooth is being used in industrial spaces to improve worker safety and defeat downtime
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Industrial operations are under growing pressure to increase efficiency, improve safety, and reduce environmental impact while scaling to meet global demand. Bluetooth® technology’s low-power, secure, and flexible wireless connectivity plays a key role in helping industrial facilities run smarter and safer.
Companies like Emerson, Quuppa, Sylvania Group, u-blox, Wiliot, and others are powering a new generation of Bluetooth® devices that are pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in industrial spaces, fueling responsible growth and long-term operational resilience.
From battery-free sensing and predictive maintenance to high-accuracy location awareness and safer field operations, Bluetooth solutions help prevent downtime before it happens, optimize resource use, and protect the people who keep facilities running. By delivering actionable data without adding complexity or waste, Bluetooth technology helps industrial spaces do more with less.
Doing more with fewer resources
As global supply chain operations expand, sustainability is becoming a bigger priority in many industrial spaces. Bluetooth sensing helps organizations deliver more while using fewer resources; they eliminate the need for disposable batteries while enabling large-scale sensing across supply chains.
“Bluetooth® technology supports years of operation, with tiny modules providing resilient communication for sustainable industrial operations,” said Peter Karlsson, senior director of technology at u-blox. “These low power levels during data transmission enable ambient operation of devices.”
“The data generated helps organizations optimize transportation routes, reduce product loss, minimize excess packaging, and improve inventory accuracy,” said Amir Khoshniyati, vice president at Wiliot. “Together, these improvements enable companies to deliver more goods while consuming fewer resources.”
Anticipating maintenance and preventing unexpected downtime
Unplanned downtime can disrupt operations and reduce productivity. Bluetooth connectivity helps operations teams monitor equipment health and detect early warning signs before failures occur, allowing them to better anticipate maintenance needs and prevent unexpected downtime.
“Data can be collected over long time periods, without disruptions, from sensors and assets using Bluetooth® modules,” said Peter Karlsson from u-blox. “The data-driven predictive maintenance is a key enabler to minimize and completely prevent production downtime.”
According to Megan Wiens, platform manager for instrument connectivity at Emerson, avoiding unplanned downtime requires proper prioritization of tasks that need attention. Bluetooth connectivity helps operations teams stay ahead of equipment issues by making device health and diagnostics instantly visible in the field.
“Devices enabled with Bluetooth® connectivity broadcast encrypted status and diagnostic information that technicians view on a mobile device — without the need for a hot work permit or having to be directly at the device and physically connect to it,” said Wiens. “As teams perform rounds and walkdowns, they can quickly see which devices are healthy and which are signaling alerts. That means early warning signs are detected sooner, maintenance can be prioritized more effectively, and issues can be addressed before they disrupt production.”
Data can be collected over long time periods, without disruptions, from sensors and assets using Bluetooth® modules. The data-driven predictive maintenance is a key enabler to minimize and completely prevent production downtime.
Peter Karlsson, u-blox
By providing continuous insight into vibration, temperature, and other performance indicators, Bluetooth sensors ensure operators do not lose visibility into process status and maintain high levels of efficiency throughout all aspects of production.
Field devices enabled with Bluetooth connectivity support a shift from reactive maintenance toward a condition-informed maintenance approach. Instead of relying on scheduled checks or time-consuming manual connections, maintenance teams can quickly and conveniently access process variables, diagnostics, and device health data during a round or walkdown from a mobile device.
“Technicians can even resolve simple problems directly through the Bluetooth® connection,” said Wiens. “Just as important, Bluetooth® connectivity also ensures that information can be viewed from devices without opening them up, reducing environmental exposure of internal electronics to moisture and contaminants. The result is higher device reliability, more efficient maintenance execution, and fewer unexpected failures.”
These large-scale sensor networks can also be built upon a Bluetooth Networked Lighting Control (NLC) infrastructure that serves as a platform for data movement. Bluetooth® NLC solutions can capture data for actionable insights, such as key performance indicators (KPIs), alerts, and heatmaps, while enabling connectivity for building management and industrial systems.
According to Clinton Milligan, senior product line manager for Sylvania Group, lighting (the most ubiquitous powered infrastructure in a facility) is capable of collecting data across buildings. This data can be used to create actionable insights for targeted energy optimization and predictive maintenance.
Bluetooth® connectivity ensures that information can be viewed from devices without opening them up, reducing environmental exposure of internal electronics to moisture and contaminants. The result is higher device reliability, more efficient maintenance execution, and fewer unexpected failures.
Megan Wiens, Emerson
“Predictive maintenance will become more commonplace, as facility managers can be alerted to potential failures in advance,” said Milligan. “Not only will we be able to react faster, but we will know exactly which parts to bring, maybe even automatically ordering replacements to arrive before old parts and equipment fail. The increasingly connected world will no doubt bring new opportunities we cannot even imagine yet. We are excited to see how environmental data, advanced sensing, AI-driven optimization, and predictive maintenance will change how intelligent buildings are designed and operate.”
Enhancing worker safety
As automation expands, Bluetooth® location-awareness solutions can help ensure safer interactions between personnel, vehicles, and automated systems through remote monitoring or wireless control interfaces, improving operational efficiency while protecting personnel.
“Precise location awareness allows facilities to monitor the proximity of resources and equipment in real time,” said Fabio Belloni, CEO and co-founder of Quuppa. “This enables safety zones, collision-avoidance alerts, and smarter coordination between humans and machines.”
Bluetooth connectivity helps create a safer work environment by minimizing the need for physical interaction with field devices, which are sometimes installed in hard-to-reach, congested, or hazardous locations. By making configuration, maintenance, and troubleshooting easier and more accessible for personnel, Bluetooth connectivity reduces the total time required to detect, diagnose, and correct issues with field devices. This means:
- Personnel spend less time in hazardous areas
- Issues are identified earlier and resolved faster
- Maintenance teams can focus only on assets that need attention
- Instruments stay protected from environmental exposure
Precise location awareness allows facilities to monitor the proximity of resources and equipment in real time. This enables safety zones, collision-avoidance alerts, and smarter coordination between humans and machines.
Fabio Belloni, Quuppa
“Technicians can access device data and perform their work from an app, via a Bluetooth® connection, conveniently on a mobile device when they are within communication range, without climbing scaffolding or venturing out into unpleasant weather conditions to connect to a device,” said Megan Wiens from Emerson.
Remote connectivity minimizes, or in some cases can eliminate, time spent in hazardous locations to service devices. Less time in the field environment means lower risk of injury while completing tasks. “Bluetooth® communication speed is up to 10x faster than a traditional HART® connection,” said Wiens. “Faster access to this information means less time diagnosing problems, less time spent in potentially hazardous locations to service devices, and more time allowed to focus on other high-value tasks.”
Bluetooth connectivity complements traditional communications by adding a modern, secure layer of insight that supports today’s digital plant strategies, increasing productivity, improving uptime, and enhancing worker safety all without changing existing control systems or wiring.
Fabio Belloni, from Quuppa, notes that Bluetooth high-accuracy positioning provides the operational intelligence needed to grow production, improving efficiency and enhancing safety for staff. “Real-time safety insights help protect workers in increasingly automated environments,” said Belloni. “These capabilities enable organizations to efficiently and sustainably scale operations while prioritizing worker safety.”
Clinton Milligan, from Sylvania Group, notes that adaptive, wireless-controlled lighting networks ensure optimal illumination in the right place for the correct amount of time. Task-appropriate lighting not only improves visibility and minimizes errors, but can help reduce accident risks as well.
“The right quality and quantity of light can also support wellbeing by minimizing glare and excessive light that can cause headaches/migraines,” said Milligan. “Furthermore, controlling the intensity and color temperature of the light is proven to help replicate the sun’s circadian rhythms, helping personnel stay more alert in the day and rest better at night.”
Shaping the future of global industrial operations
As industrial environments become more connected and data-driven, Bluetooth® technology is proving to be a practical foundation for smarter, safer, and more sustainable operations. Bluetooth connectivity complements existing systems while enabling new levels of visibility and control.
Bluetooth sensing reduces waste and maintenance burdens, predictive insights help prevent costly downtime, and wireless access to device data minimizes risk for frontline workers. High-accuracy positioning and intelligent lighting systems further enhance safety, efficiency, and energy optimization without requiring major infrastructure changes.
By supporting efficiency and worker safety at scale, Bluetooth technology improves industrial performance while helping to shape a more responsible and resilient future for global industrial operations.
Learn more about how Bluetooth solutions are being used to enhance productivity across industrial spaces.
Feilo Sylvania International Group Kft. (‘Feilo Sylvania’ or ’Sylvania Group’) is an independent company headquartered in Budapest, Hungary. Feilo Sylvania owns and uses the “Sylvania” brand in various territories outside North America and Australia.
