WINTERVILLE, N.C. – The cost of on-site incidents in the US involving heavy machinery is rising sharply. Between 2020 and 2024, US businesses recorded around 1.2 million workplace injury claims, with employees missing an average of 80 workdays per incident. Construction, manufacturing, and other high-risk sectors are among the hardest hit, with vehicle-related accidents accounting for the majority of claims.
Against this backdrop, Speedshield Technologies – a global leader in industrial connectivity and safety solutions – is accelerating its US expansion with the appointment of Michael Barnard as Vice President of Sales. Barnard joins the company at a time of accelerating demand for AI-powered safety systems, and brings more than a decade of experience in construction equipment, territory development, and customer relationship building.
In his new role, Barnard will oversee Speedshield Technologies’ go-to-market strategy across North America, with a focus on expanding adoption of the company’s flagship AiVA system beyond material handling and into sectors such as construction, mining, agriculture and forestry. AiVA, Speedshield’s advanced pedestrian detection platform, uses stereoscopic vision and on-board AI to identify human forms in real time – even in low-light or high-risk operating conditions. Built for scalability and rapid deployment, the system is already in use across thousands of assets throughout major industrial fleets.
“What drew me to Speedshield was the mission. This is a technology that quite literally saves lives,” said Barnard. “When you spend years working around heavy equipment, you understand how easily a split-second mistake or lapse in attention can lead to tragedy. And the high volume of false alarms in legacy systems erodes trust to the point where workers and operators become overwhelmed and unable to do their jobs safely and effectively.”
Barnard continued “We now have a system that can detect pedestrians with near-perfect accuracy, virtually eliminating the risk of false alarms. My goal is to make sure this technology gets into the hands of the people who need it most.”
Barnard’s appointment reflects Speedshield Technologies’ growing commitment to the US market, where industrial safety remains a critical concern across sectors such as construction, mining, and logistics. From 2019 to 2023, construction recorded the highest fatality rate at 14.6 per 100,000 workers, followed by mining at 12.9, manufacturing at 9.3, and wholesale trade at 8.6. With workplace incidents involving heavy machinery still a leading cause of injury and fatality, Speedshield sees significant opportunity to deliver a more intelligent, less intrusive safety solution tailored to American worksites.
Barnard joins Speedshield from H&E Equipment Services, where he was responsible for revitalizing underperforming sales territories across rural markets and growing a customer base from the ground up. He plans to apply the same relationship-driven approach at Speedshield, drawing on his extensive industry network and direct experience with the environments in which AiVA is designed to perform. Multiple adoptions by major construction companies are demonstrating exceptional performance results and strong interest across uses in other vertical applications.
As the company looks to diversify its market presence, Barnard’s arrival signals a more confident push into sectors that have traditionally lagged in advanced safety technologies.
“We’ve seen enormous success in material handling,” Barnard added. “Now we’re targeting environments where incident rates are even higher, and because AiVA can be retrofitted to existing equipment, it’s a low-cost, low-disruption way of bringing cutting-edge safety to existing fleets.”
Commenting on the appointment, Speedshield [spokesperson] said: “Michael brings a deep understanding of the challenges faced on worksites and a rare ability to connect that understanding with practical solutions on the ground. His experience with machine equipment, his passion for safety, and his drive to build lasting partnerships make him the ideal person to lead our next phase of growth. We’re thrilled to welcome him to the team.”
Barnard and his team are preparing for a busy slate of industry events, including the NSC Safety Congress & Expo in Denver this September and CONEXPO-CON/AGG in Las Vegas next March – two of the world’s largest gatherings of safety and construction professionals. At each, Speedshield Technologies will showcase AiVA’s real-time detection capabilities, including demonstrations of its low-light performance and ability to identify pedestrians even when prone or crouched – conditions in which traditional systems typically fail.
“Once people see what AiVA can do, it speaks for itself, “Barnard concluded. “But we’ve got to get out there, show it in action, and make the case that safety systems don’t have to be disruptive or frustrating. They just have to work seamlessly as part of the environment.”
