Blackline Safety Introduces G8—The Most Connected Safety Wearable Ever Made

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Blackline Safety Introduces G8—The Most Connected Safety Wearable Ever Made

2026-01-13 20:17 Last Updated At：01-14 16:52

CALGARY, Canada--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 13, 2026--

Blackline Safety Corp. (TSX: BLN), a global leader in connected safety technology, today announced G8, the next evolution of worksite safety and the most connected wearable the company has ever built. Designed from the ground up as a true platform, G8 combines advanced gas detection, lone worker protection, and radio-quality communication in one rugged device that connects workers to each other, to their safety teams, and to the broader digital worksite—with real-time data streamed to the cloud to keep safety and operations leaders informed.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260113439071/en/

“G8 gives workers access to the tools and information they need to confidently get the job done and get home safe,” said Cody Slater, CEO and Chair, Blackline Safety. “By unifying gas detection, real-time monitoring, and communication in one connected device, we’re delivering more than incremental improvement. We’re giving every worker a direct line to the people, data, systems and support they need to make faster, safer decisions.”

G8 builds on the proven foundation of Blackline’s G7 line, while introducing breakthrough capabilities that set a new standard for connected safety and productivity.

A Connected Gas Detector That Does More

At its core, G8 is a fully featured, connected gas detector with a rugged, IP-67 rating that’s built to meet the most demanding industrial environments.

But G8 also goes further, consolidating several critical tools into one intrinsically safe device, so workers no longer need to carry and manage multiple devices. Plus, real-time cloud connectivity so teams get the field data they need to respond faster and keep operations running smoothly. With G8, organizations get:

Safety and situational awareness:

3 ways to communicate (in emergencies or for everyday productivity) with enhanced speaker and mic technology:

Visibility and usability:

Real-Time Data That Drives Safer, More Productive Work

Every G8 streams live data to Blackline’s data and analytics platform—Blackline Live—via the cloud. This gives safety leaders real-time visibility into worker status, gas readings, and site conditions, and it gives operations teams actionable insights to prevent incidents, reduce delays, and keep projects moving.

A Platform Built for Today—and What Comes Next

Unlike traditional gas detectors, G8 functions as a connected platform that’s built to be able to integrate with the rest of the digital worksite. It’s future-ready to plug into other digital platforms that organizations use today, from human resource management systems (HRMS) to field service management tools to hot-permitting applications and more, helping eliminate manual workflows and remove barriers to getting work done.

And because G8 receives automatic firmware updates, it will continue to evolve with new capabilities, expanded integrations, and emerging technologies like AI-driven insights.

“We’re talking about a platform built to grow with you,” said Phil Benson, VP, Product, Blackline Safety. “As worksites become more connected, automated and data-driven, G8 has the flexibility to meet tomorrow’s needs, not just today’s. It lays the foundation for future capabilities like AI integrations, expanded calling features, and predictive analytics that will continue to raise the bar for connected work for years to come.”

G8 is protected by more than a dozen patents with additional patents pending.

Blackline is taking orders today, with first shipments expected in February 2026. To learn more about G8 and some upcoming events, including a LinkedIn Live on February 2 and a product webinar on February 25, visit www.blacklinesafety.com/G8.

About Blackline Safety: Blackline Safety is a technology leader driving innovation in the industrial workforce through IoT (Internet of Things). With connected safety devices and predictive analytics, Blackline enables companies to drive towards zero safety incidents and improved operational performance. Blackline provides wearable devices, personal and area gas monitoring, cloud-connected software and data analytics to meet demanding safety challenges and enhance overall productivity for organizations with customers in more than 75 countries. Armed with cellular and satellite connectivity, Blackline provides a lifeline to tens of thousands of people, having reported over 300 billion data-points and initiated over eight million emergency alerts. For more information, visit BlacklineSafety.com and connect with us on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn and Instagram.

Trump’s White House ballroom gets final approval days after a judge ordered a halt to construction

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom won final approval from a key agency on Thursday, despite a federal judge recently ordering a halt to construction unless Congress allows what would be the biggest structural change to the American landmark in more than 70 years.

The 12-member National Capital Planning Commission, the agency tasked with approving construction on federal property in the Washington region, took the vote because U.S. District Judge Richard Leon’s ruling — which came two days earlier — affects construction activities but not the planning process, said the commission's Trump-appointed chair, Will Scharf.

A vote of 8-1, with two commissioners voting present and one absent, allowed the plan to move forward.

Despite the agency’s approval, the judge’s ruling and a legal fight over the ballroom could stall progress on a legacy project that Trump is racing to see completed before the end of his term in early 2029. It’s among a series of changes the Republican president is planning for the nation’s capital to leave his lasting imprint while he’s still in office.

Before the vote, Scharf, a top White House aide, noted that Leon's order has been stayed for two weeks as the administration seeks an appeal. He said, as he understood the decision, it “really does not impact our action here today.”

Reading from notes, Scharf also delivered an impassioned defense of the project that reviewed the full history of changes and additions to the White House that were criticized when they were made but have become beloved with the passage of time. He spoke about the addition of the north and south porticos and the balcony added by President Harry Truman.

Scharf suggested that Trump’s proposed ballroom will similarly come to be viewed as a wise addition — despite drawing contemporary opposition from some members of the public and government officials.

“I believe that in time this ballroom will be considered every bit as much of a national treasure as the other key components of the White House,” Scharf said.

Scharf also said the project has been viewed negatively because of opposition to Trump, instead of the merits, saying, “I feel that we’ve been unfairly slighted in the press and otherwise for the way we’ve gone about reviewing this particular project.”

The vote by the commission, which includes three members Trump gets to appoint, had initially been scheduled for March but was postponed to Thursday because so many people signed up to comment at the commission’s meeting last month. The comments were overwhelmingly in opposition to the ballroom.

The lone “no” vote was cast by Phil Mendelson, a Democrat who chairs the Council of the District of Columbia. Linda Argo and Arrington Dixon, the two commissioners appointed by Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, voted present.

Mendelson criticized the design of the ballroom addition and how fast it was approved.

“It’s just too large,” he said.

Criticism also came from Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization. One of its attorneys, Jon Golinger, said the commission had discounted opposition from city officials and thousands of people who commented against the project, and ignored the judge's ruling. Several commissioners, including Scharf, had said they took the public feedback seriously.

“This approval is illegitimate and this vote is a joke," Golinger said.

Trump, in a statement after the vote, thanked the commissioners and said he was honored.

“When completed, it will be the Greatest and Most Beautiful Ballroom of its kind anywhere in the World, and a fabulous complement to our Beautiful and Storied White House!” the president said on social media.

Before voting, the commission considered design changes to the 90,000-square-foot (8,400-square-meter) ballroom addition that the president announced aboard Air Force One on Sunday, as he flew back to Washington from a weekend at his Florida home.

He removed a large staircase on the south side of the building and added an uncovered porch to the southwest side. Architects and other critics of the project had panned the staircase as too large and basically useless since there was no way to enter the ballroom at the top.

A White House official said the president had considered comments from the National Capital Planning Commission and another oversight entity, the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, which approved the project earlier this year, as well as members of the public.

The official, who was not authorized to publicly discuss the ballroom design and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said additional “refinements” had been made to the exterior.

The ballroom, now estimated to cost $400 million, has expanded in scope and price tag since Trump first announced the project last summer, citing a need for space other than a tent on the lawn to host important guests. Trump demolished the East Wing in October with little warning, and site preparation and underground work have been underway since then.

Two other Trump-appointed commissioners, Stuart Levenbach and James Blair, voted for the project.

Levenbach, who serves as vice chairman and is the federal government’s chief statistician, said the White House is currently “not suited” to accommodate large numbers of guests and the addition will improve the “utility” of the compound.

He said tunnels and other structures underground at the White House made it impossible to place many features of the ballroom there, too, as some have suggested might be possible. Levenbach said the addition is a “multipurpose facility,” noting that, in addition to a ballroom, it will also have offices for the first lady, kitchen space and a theater.

“This is not an expansion for its own sake,” Levenbach said.

Blair, a deputy to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, said visitors and guests of the president deserve a “better experience."

Scharf and Blair also said Trump will get “very limited use” of the ballroom before his term ends.

Trump went ahead with the project before seeking input from the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts, which he reconstituted with allies and supporters.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a private nonprofit organization, sued after Trump demolished the East Wing last fall to build the ballroom addition — a space nearly twice as big as the mansion itself.

Trump says it will be paid for with donations from wealthy people and corporations, including him, though public dollars are paying for underground bunkers and security upgrades.

The trust sought a temporary halt to construction until Trump presented the project to both commissions and Congress for approval. Leon agreed but said that his order would take effect in two weeks and that construction related to security would be allowed.