Training and Education
What is EHS Software?
EHS (Environmental Health and Safety) Software, also called EHS Management Software, is a technology that streamlines safety activities and enables the reporting of safety metrics. There is a huge shift happening in the construction industry; companies are going paperless to improve their safety management program.
Construction EHS Software allows users to store and manage all their safety documentation, monitor their worker’s certifications and manage other areas like corrective actions and worker compliance. Using an EHS Software can lead to safer job sites and make daily management of your construction company’s workflows more streamlined.
Using EHS Software for your construction site can lead to a slew of benefits including reduced incident rates. Here are some benefits you may see after implementing an EHS Management Software:
Keeping workers safe and reducing incidents may be one of the biggest reasons construction managers decide to partner with EHS Software. Using EHS software allows you to work with the most up-to-date version of a form, reducing the chances of missing new risks or warnings.
You never want to send a worker whose certification has expired onto a job site, preventing this from happening. EHS Software can provide you with insights and reminders for when certifications are up for renewal. Instead of relying on someone’s word about whether or not they are certified, pulling up your certification management portal can give you more confidence to find a properly trained worker to run a certain job.
Simply put, filling out a paper form takes considerably more time than completing a digital form. Not to mention the back and forth from the field to the office with stacks of paper and the headache that is sorting through paper documents. Michael Beevers with Appia Developments shares that he has to go through twenty risk assessments at one time on top of his other jobs, keeping him at his desk longer than he’d like.
When your office staff can get a notification that a form has been completed or a piece of construction equipment has been reported as faulty, your overall company autonomy is is significantly boosted, making everything run smoother. Gone are the days of texting your project managers or field staff updates on the day’s FLHA. Now they will automatically get notified if changes are made. EHS Software ensures that everyone, from office staff to construction field staff, is updated on what’s happening on the job site in real time.
Using Construction EHS Software can make identifying potential hazards and implementing preventive measures in real-time easier. This reduces the likelihood of incidents that could disrupt the project schedule. Communication is a key part in ensuring project deadlines are met; EHS Software ensures that everyone is aligned to minimize misunderstandings and project delays. By automating processes such as task assignment and compliance monitoring, EHS software enhances operational efficiency, enabling smoother project execution.
OSHA and other governing compliance bodies are constantly changing worker best practices. Updating policies and forms is much easier digitally. Instead of having to re-print forms every time a new implication is made, EHS Software allows you to go into a form, make a change, and have it be reflected immediately to keep forms up to date and make sure you’re adhering to safety regulations.
Getting your construction crews aligned on one platform instead of working with a fragmented system can help foster a unified safety culture. Not only that but EHS software grants construction workers access to their safety training and guidelines, ensuring they’re aware of company safety procedures and protocols.
It also fosters employee engagement and active participation in safety management programs. Assigning corrective actions, creating new customized forms for workers to complete and forwarding documents are all elements that can lead to a safer culture and possible with an EHS Software.
Many construction companies report having boxes and boxes of paperwork to sort through, but were able to shift over to a much more manageable process when they partnered with EHS Software companies. If your construction company is spending hours a week dealing with safety paperwork and admin duties, it might just be a sign you need EHS Software.
It is no doubt EHS Software saves construction companies considerable amounts of money by preventing accidents, cutting down on paper costs and helping with many other strategic objectives. But how can you calculate the return on investment of EHS Software? Here are three processes to consider when calculating the ROI of EHS Software:
Examine previous incidents and the total monetary value attached to them. Check how often those incidents were happening and calculate how much your incidents are costing you every year in project downtime, workers’ compensation, repairs, etc. EHS Software can greatly reduce incidents from happening, so expect these costs to lessen with an EHS Software.
Paper is surprisingly expensive and it can quickly add up. Not only are there costs to producing and storing paper, but there are also hidden costs when things go wrong. Misfiled and lost documents have high costs associated, and what happens in the event of a fire or flood? Paper sheets get stained with coffee or the elements far too often on the job site and these little accidents don’t happen without a cost.
O’Connor Electric reports saving over $3,000 in ink and paper costs annually with their EHS Software. Review your paper costs for the last year to understand how much you’re spending on paper.
What would it cost your company if OSHA or your regulating body paid a visit to your construction job site and one of your workers didn’t have their proper certifications on them? Serious OSHA violations may result in fees over $15,000.
Consider reviewing the following when you are in pursuit of construction EHS Software:
For a more thorough guide on what to look for, check out this resource: Choosing the Right Safety Software for your Construction Company.
EHS Software can help construction companies majorly improve their safety culture through actions like reducing their incident rates. It may seem like a big investment at first, but the ROI of EHS Software can be huge, just make sure you find the right one by evaluating aspects like ease of use and customizability.