Construction is undeniably one of the most dangerous industries. In fact, the construction industry had the most workplace deaths in 2020 according to the National Safety Council (NSC).
Just one look at a standard construction worksite makes it easy to understand the dangers, from heavy equipment and heights to power tools. According to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), the dangers in the construction industry can be classified into the following “Fatal Four” which includes:
- Falls
- Electrical exposure
- Struck-by objects
- Caught in/between objects
Falls make up a significant amount of construction fatalities and unfortunately smaller construction companies face this issue more often than larger ones.
2020: 1008 construction fatalities, 351 of which from falls (OSHA)
2015-2019: Small construction employers (<20 employees) account for 75% of fatal falls
Improving Construction Safety
The topic of construction safety is a complicated issue that has to be approached from all angles, including with software. While the connection between construction software and safety may not be instantly clear, it is something we have built into our platform.
Our software offers you simple but powerful ways to track, enforce and support the various safety processes you have in place and help you start a few you may not have yet. Let’s take a look at how our software can help improve safety processes within your organization
Before the Job
Before the job starts there are a variety of ways to boost safety, like making sure everyone is up to date with their training and safety certifications. Here are some of the tools our construction software has built in that can help your team start every job with safety in mind.
Signature Collection Platform: This allows you to make sure everyone acknowledges and signs off on policies and procedures. While helpful for safety policies, this feature can be used for all required signoffs, allowing you to automate and track signatures with accuracy.
Training Tracker: You can use the system to recommend, remind, and track the completion of safety training for your entire workforce. For instance, you can track who is at your Toolbox talks and create documentation for audits and potential problems. If needed, it’s simple to run a report and show completed trainings.
Assign Trainings: You can assign required training and certifications to jobs. This makes it easier to ensure that workers do not end up on tasks and jobs they are not qualified to complete. This also provides helpful safety documentation for your records.
Asset Tracking: This feature allows you to assign employees’ assets within the system and track who has access. This helps you verify and document that workers only have access to the equipment they are trained and qualified to use.
Safety Certifications: Are everyone’s certifications up to date? Is something expiring soon? It can be hard to track it all manually or with systems that aren’t connected. Within our system you can keep track of all certifications and receive alerts for those nearing expiration to easily stay compliant.
On the job
Once the job begins, safety is an absolute daily necessity, so it has to be on the top of everyone’s mind. Here are some examples of how software can help make safety a part of your daily workflow and provide documentation of your efforts.
Real-time GPS: Verify that workers are where they are supposed to be, which can provide documentation support in case of an accident and allow proactive workforce management.
Clocking In or Out: Did an accident happen at work? You can require employees to answer questions or sign off when they clock in or out to verify any safety-related issue. You can also require employees to sign off on questions at the end of the day.
Example: Did any accident or injury happen on the job today?
Do you have a safety concern to report today?
Custom forms: You can design forms to track safety-centered programs, like daily inspections. For example, you could create daily inspection forms for workers to sign off on. Of course, this has additional applications beyond safety.
Additional benefits
How closely are you tracking high-risk activities? If you’ve dealt with a workers’ comp audit, you know how important it is to know how much time your workers spend on high-risk tasks. This is as much a safety issue as it is compliance for construction companies, especially those doing public works projects.
Real-time high-risk task tracking for accurate workers’ comp rates:
Our system lets employees switch tasks before and after high-risk work to accurately track how much time is spent on those activities. You can generate a detailed and accurate report of all high-risk tasks which you can then use for your WC billing to keep the cost in line with your actual needs. This ability also makes creating certified payroll reports quick and easy.
Safety is too important to not be an everyday topic that’s supported by every process within your company. This is why construction organizations work so hard to elevate the safety of workers and reduce risk. Our system enhances your efforts and provides you with extra tools and documentation. Together we can help bulletproof your organization and keep everyone safer and more profitable.
The material presented here is educational in nature and is not intended to be, nor should be relied upon, as legal or financial advice. Please consult with an attorney or financial professional for advice.
