Emerson, a global leader in technology and engineering, said it had collaborated with Majid Al Futtaim Properties and Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza), to provide more than 1,100 labourers and security staff at World Security in Jebel Ali and Al Zahia – Sharjah’s first integrated, master planned community - with freezer-pack neck coolers to help with the UAE’s extreme summer heat.

Al Zahia - owned by Sharjah Holding and managed by Majid Al Futtaim Properties - is a milestone development that will help diversify the real estate sector of Sharjah.

Emerson said the locally-manufactured neck cooler had been custom-made to ensure that workers were not only kept cool, but experience little or no obstruction in performing their day-to-day tasks.

Once removed from the freezer and wrapped around the neck, the slim-line accessory helps cool the body and reduce its core temperature. Each cold gel pack lasts for approximately one hour under extreme temperatures of 45 degrees Celsius. The high-tech towel around the gel pack is not only soothing, but also absorbs sweat and releases supplementary cooling sensations, which makes workers feel cooler for longer, it stated.

According to experts at Nasa’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies and the World Meteorological Organization, July was the world’s hottest month on record.

Summer in the UAE is one of the most challenging times of the year for those working outdoors, even with the addition of a mandatory break from 12.30 pm to 3 pm for construction workers, said Emerson in its statement.

Labourers often encounter temperatures in excess of 40 degrees Celsius, it added.

Dalia Kaki, the marketing manager, Emerson (Middle East & Africa), said the company continually strives to make a positive impact on the communities in which they serve.

"This initiative is a small gesture to help ease conditions for the local workforce and also aligns well with our overall company mission to enhance human comfort," she noted.

Emerson said it was planning to cover other construction sites and business parks across the city to help make a difference to those working outside.

Based in Missouri (US), Emerson is a key provider of innovative solutions for customers in industrial, commercial, and consumer markets around the world.-TradeArabia News Service