Ohio awards UC $2.1 million to research and develop new protections for workers
Cooling technology for firefighters one of two state-funded projects underway at UC
As reported by multiple media outlets, the University of Cincinnati has been awarded over $2 million in grants from the state of Ohio to research and develop new personal protective equipment (PPE) and personal protective technology (PPT) to protect Ohio’s workers.
The grants, over $1 million each, were awarded by the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation’s (BWC) Workforce Safety Innovation Center for the benefit of workers employed in various fields including first responders, manufacturing, agriculture, and other sectors requiring additional protection while on the job.
Left to right: Ashley Kubley, Sandi Golden-Vest, Stephanie McCloud and Jun Wang with mock grant checks from the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation. Kubley and Wang are the principal investigators on two research projects awarded by the state. Golden-Vest and McCloud are representatives from the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation.
A $1.1 million grant will be used to research and develop a firefighter jacket liner that brings a firefighter’s body temperature down through cooling technology and protects the body from other external hazards. This project is being led by Ashley Kubley, associate professor of fashion design in UC’s College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP).
“This is the largest grant our college has ever been awarded, and we are grateful for the opportunity to represent our college amongst others across the university who have achieved similar milestones,” says Kubley, who heads DAAP’s Evelyn G. Burgoyne Textiles Innovation Laboratory.
Her team on this project includes researchers from DAAP and the colleges of engineering and medicine.
“Our labs and research locations provide us with state-of-the-art equipment, tools, instruments and personnel that are at the heart of how we collect the data that proves value and success," says Kubley. The team, she says, will partner with The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and LION Protects, a manufacturer of personal protection equipment in Dayton, Ohio, to produce the fire coat liner and test it on firefighters in live burn training.
The lesson we learned from COVID is the importance of PPE when it comes down to protecting workers.
Jun Wang, PhD UC College of Medicine
The second grant, for $1 million, will be used to develop wireless sensors for respiratory masks to detect when hazardous particles have breached the masks. The project is being led by led by Jun Wang, an assistant professor of environmental sciences in UC’s College of Medicine. Wang says that workers, while wearing their masks, will simply be able to approach a device that will give a red, green or yellow light depending on levels of exposure.
“The project will not only promote the usage of PPE but also improve the efficacy of such use with cutting-edge sensor technologies,” says Wang, adding “the lesson we learned from COVID is the importance of PPE when it comes down to protecting workers.”
Both researchers say the grants indicate a significant investment from the State of Ohio to a better, safer and healthier workplace. The projects are estimated to take around a year to complete.
The grant awards were covered by both local and regional media.
WVXU: 2 UC projects win 1M each from the Bureau of Workers' Comp
WKRC: 2 UC projects helping keep laborers safe on the job granted over $2 million
Spectrum News 1: State grant helps UC researchers improve firefighter PPE
Featured image at top courtesy of Unsplash.
Impact Lives Here
The University of Cincinnati is leading public urban universities into a new era of innovation and impact. Our faculty, staff and students are saving lives, changing outcomes and bending the future in our city's direction. Next Lives Here.
Related Stories
Lindner graduate students shine in international simulation competition
November 10, 2025
Five master’s of information systems (MS IS) students took home fifth place out of 23 universities at the International ERPsim Competition hosted by HEC Montreal during the recent spring semester. The competition tests students’ knowledge of enterprise resource planning (ERP) software and their ability to adapt to challenging business problems.
Sugar overload killing hearts
November 10, 2025
Two in five people will be told they have diabetes during their lifetime. And people who have diabetes are twice as likely to develop heart disease. One of the deadliest dangers? Diabetic cardiomyopathy. But groundbreaking University of Cincinnati research hopes to stop and even reverse the damage before it’s too late.
Is going nuclear the solution to Ohio’s energy costs?
November 10, 2025
The Ohio Capital Journal recently reported that as energy prices continue to climb, economists are weighing the benefits of going nuclear to curb costs. The publication dove into a Scioto Analysis survey of 18 economists to weigh the pros and cons of nuclear energy. One economist featured was Iryna Topolyan, PhD, professor of economics at the Carl H. Lindner College of Business.