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Home/News & Insights/How Innovation Addresses the Mental Health Crisis in Construction
Hamzah Shanbari, Director of Innovation, presents Dysruptek’s latest innovation for construction safety, the StillGuard wellness booth prototype.
May 8, 2025
How Innovation Addresses the Mental Health Crisis in Construction
Discover a new development in mental health and safety for construction. Learn how the StillGuard prototype supports jobsite wellness.
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Construction professionals face some of the nation’s highest rates of stress, depression and suicide, yet emotional and mental health on the job site go largely unaddressed.
In 2022, the Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) found that construction workers are five times more likely to die by suicide than from a jobsite accident. Haskell’s innovation and investment arm, Dysruptek, is addressing this alarming trend with its latest prototype: StillGuard.
Spearheaded by Haskell’s Director of Innovation, Hamzah Shanbari, StillGuard is a small, closed sensory booth where frontline workers can sit and take short mental breaks with immersive, calming experiences.
“Construction is a high-stress career; safety concerns, tight schedules and a persistent stigma around mental health,” Shanbari said. “Yet, industry-wide, tangible tools to address this issue remain scarce. This is an exploration of how data and modern technology can help fill this need.”
StillGuard uses audiovisual stimulation to help calm the nervous system by giving users short breaks inside the noise-canceling booth.
Here’s How it Works
In its current iteration, StillGuard is designed for single-person use and provides immersive, science-backed mental health support through three distinct audiovisual experiences: Repair, Reset and Recharge. Each mode takes approximately three to five minutes and is rooted in sound therapy principles and visual techniques proven to calm the nervous system.
Repair uses low-frequency tones and ambient soundscapes tuned to 432 Hz, a frequency associated with reduced stress markers and bilateral visual movements based on Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. This mode is designed to ease tension and promote a sense of calm.
Reset is more meditative, incorporating deep, evolving hums, natural water sounds and isochronic tones near 8 Hz to encourage a relaxed mental state – ideal for regaining focus during high-pressure tasks.
Recharge introduces brighter tones and a slightly elevated tempo to gently lift mood and energy. It centers around the 528 Hz frequency, often linked to positive emotional responses and stress reduction.
The user interface is intentionally minimal – just one choice, and then the session begins. This simplicity ensures the experience is accessible, frictionless and suited to a construction site's fast-paced environment.
The concepts for the experiences come from a blend of academic research and cross-industry collaboration, including input from sound design and visual therapy professionals. StillGuard is similar to meditation pods commonly found in modern wellness centers, offices and airports, but its target user base brings unique needs and risks.
The Challenge
“The potential is big, but we recognize the difficulty that comes with addressing something so sensitive in such a unique way,” Shanbari said. “We need to destigmatize mental health in construction and bring curiosity to the conversation. Statistically, people don’t ask for help if there’s a risk of being ostracized. So, we’re mindful of the hesitation to use something like StillGuard. Another concern is cleanliness on active job sites. With all this in mind, we’re designing it to be private, easy to use and hygienic.
“We want people to feel comfortable enough to try it with the hope that the experience makes enough of a difference that they’d use it again as needed.”
While StillGuard is still in the pilot phase, the goal is clear: build a culturally considerate, scalable solution for jobsite wellness. As Shanbari emphasizes, the project is about trying new solutions in a space where innovation is overdue.
“We don’t claim to have all the answers,” he said. “But we’re committed to finding them.”
Click here to join the mailing list for early access to updates on StillGuard.
Through Dysruptek, its innovation and venture capital arm, Haskell leads the construction industry in technological development and adoption. Contact the Dysruptek team to discuss your idea “For the Betterment of the Industry.”
Haskell delivers $2+ billion annually in Architecture, Engineering, Construction (AEC) and Consulting solutions to assure certainty of outcome for complex capital projects worldwide. Haskell is a global, fully integrated, single-source design-build and EPC firm with over 2,600 highly specialized, in-house design, construction and administrative professionals across industrial and commercial markets. With 25+ office locations around the globe, Haskell is a trusted partner for global and emerging clients.
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