Few can deny the steep learning curve global industry has found itself on over the last 18 months. The onset and rapid spread of the SARS-COV-2 virus has not only proven to be the worst health crisis the modern world has ever seen, but left thousands of businesses either shuttered or in serious dire straits.

There are, however, several companies which have stepped up to the mark, driving innovation to try and solve some of the unique challenges presented by the pandemic.

To mark this, Fast Company has dedicated its annual list of the World's Most Innovative Companies for 2021 to those which have strived to make life easier during this most difficult of periods. Aerospace, building technologies, performance materials and technologies, and safety and productivity solutions provider Honeywell has found itself honored on this renowned leaderboard.

Honeywell

Honeywell was one of 463 companies from 29 different countries to be featured on the list - named in the Enterprise category for advances in quantum computing, as well as several innovations relating directly to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"In a year of unprecedented challenges, the companies on this list exhibit fearlessness, ingenuity, and creativity in the face of crisis," said Fast Company Deputy Editor David Lidsky.

At the onset of the crisis, Honeywell went to work producing millions of life-saving N95 surgical quality masks to protect frontline workers toiling in health centers, hospitals, care homes, supermarkets, and more during the pandemic. These people were unable to stay at home to work, so protecting them became a top priority for brands which cared to get involved.

Air travel also rapidly developed into a concern during the pandemic, with many flights being grounded altogether. However, certain flights for business or political reasons remained essential, so a method was needed to make sure the sealed cabins of planes could be adequately sanitized before each journey.

To meet this need, Honeywell rapidly developed and deployed the Honeywell UV Treatment System, which uses ultraviolet-c light to disinfect airplane cabins. For smaller vehicles such as trains, cars, and even small aircraft, Hoeywell developed the UV Treatment Wand which operates under the same principle to detect microscopic viruses and bacteria.

A New Kind of Maintenance

The coronavirus pandemic has created a need for a new kind of field service and it's great to see companies such as Honeywell stepping up to fill that void. The question posed by service brands is no longer just, "How do we keep machines and other equipment running at an optimum level?" but also, "How do we make sure workplaces and other professional environments are safe for people to operate within?"

"It's an honor to be recognized as one the world's most innovative companies. While 2020 was a challenging year, it was also a remarkable one for Honeywell," said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at Honeywell, Darius Adamczyk. "We mobilized quickly to create solutions the world needed to get back to work, play, life, and travel as quickly and safely as possible. At Honeywell, innovation is in our DNA and is part of our 100-year heritage of shaping the future. We look forward to continuing to create groundbreaking technologies that transform the way the world works."

However, fear not, fans of more traditional field service offerings, as Honeywell has also been innovating in regular maintenance.

Proactive maintenance is at the fore of Honeywell's strategy moving forwards. Using advanced sensors and data science allows Honeywell's dedicated teams of experts to constantly monitor the condition of its clients' devices from a remote location and be alerted to any issues early on - before they develop into larger, production-halting shutdowns.

Armed with this information, Honeywell engineers can arrive on site armed with all the information and parts they need to repair the issue. This increases the proportion of first-visit fixes, increases customer satisfaction, and reduces the total number of visits required.

"Honeywell thinks about proactive support and maintenance as part of the digital transformation or a digital execution model, where we are in a position to collect the data, check the data, make sure it's within the recommended settings or ranges, and be able to respond to those conditions in advance," said Bart Winters of Honeywell Process Solutions.

Final Thoughts

Whether it's providing unique and rightly lauded methods of making sure everyone stays safe from COVID-19, or creating new roads in proactive maintenance, Honeywell is making sure that innovation keeps this industry driving forwards.

You can hear Honeywell's VP & GM Building Technology Service, Laura Liltrello speak at Field Service Palm Springs 2021, taking place in November at the JW Marriott, Palm Springs, CA.

Download the agenda today for more information and insights.