INVENT 2025 Finalist: Vibrotect

Founders name: Matthew Murnaghan, Jack Sayers & Nathan Thompson

What was the “aha” moment that sparked your idea?

Vibrotect came about following a Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) diagnosis in a family member. At the time, we’d heard the term HAVS and vibration white finger but didn’t really know what it was all about. It wasn’t until a medical check-up that it really hit home exactly what we were dealing with. HAVS is an irreversible condition, so there’s no cure, and if you don’t manage it properly it’s only going to get worse. We had a look for any solutions out there that could help but we couldn’t find anything that could be applied to their workplace. There wasn’t really much we could do about it, and this is when the idea came. We reframed the problem and looked at it from a prevention perspective rather than a cure, and Vibrotect was born – so that no one else will have to live their lives with the effects of HAVS.

What is your background?

Jack originally came up with the idea, having witnessed first-hand the damaging effects of Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome in a family member, who unbeknown to them, had spent years working over their safe daily vibration limit. Jack and Matthew began working on the idea and brought Nathan on board through the Catalyst Co-Founders programme. Jack has experience working in the manufacturing industry and sees vibrating tools in operation and how people interact with them on a daily basis. Matthew has a background in electrical HSQE and governance, helping companies understand their legal obligations under health & safety legislation. Nathan is a software engineer, specialising in the Software Development Lifecycle, with experience as an engineering manager in a scaling green-tech startup.

Tell us a bit about your solution

We have developed a vibration monitoring wristband, that alerts users of their safe daily limits, protecting them from developing HAVS, so that they can have safe and pain-free working careers. Our Vibrotect wristband is equipped with real-time vibration measuring technology, providing the user with live data, via the screen as their vibration exposure accumulates throughout the day, with a buzzer sounding as they approach and surpass safe limits that have been set by the Health & Safety Executive. We’ve also developed our Vibrotect Monitoring Portal, which extracts this data from the wristband and provides employers with trends over time, offering insights and identifying hotspots.

Our goal is to give employers the information they need to help keep their employees safe, but this also has the added benefit of having some data to back up your case in the event of a legal claim.

What first impression do you want users to have when they experience/use your product?

From an end user’s perspective, we’ve put a big focus on leaving as minimal an impression on their day to day operations as possible. We’re well aware that if something like this is going to cause people hassle, they won’t use and wear it. Seamless integration into a variety of workplace settings is one of our key selling points, and ideally we want people to put the wristband on at the start of their shift, just as they do with their other PPE, and essentially forget about it (unless they approach or surpass safe limits).

But as a lasting impression, we want both end users and their employers to see our system as a reliable solution, giving peace of mind that all employees are kept safe.

Where do you hope to be in five years?

In five years time we want to be able to say that we’ve helped educate and protect people from HAVS who otherwise would be at risk of developing this irreversible condition. We want to be recognised as a reputable industry leader in health & safety tech in the UK and aim to be ready to scale overseas around this time. Having seen first-hand what HAVS can do, we know that every single company or person that gets involved in this movement, is taking a step in the right direction to eventually make HAVS a thing of the past.

What’s the best piece of feedback you’ve received so far?

Some people will like it, some people won’t. But with what you’re trying to do, if you’re doing it for the right reasons, it has the potential to go far.