One Degree

One size safety systems don't fit all.

Written by HammerTech Editorial Team | Apr 16, 2020 5:54:00 PM

You're not one size. You're growing. Your systems and processes are constantly changing, adapting to new protocols, regulations, and environments. And you don't have the time or energy to fit your super size company into a shoe box sized technology solution.

In the past, technology companies wanting to serve construction have made one big mistake... they developed solutions based on other industries (like manufacturing), and have expected construction (a very unique industry) to adapt. It's the classic, "we built our solution the way we think construction should work" rather than building the solution the way construction companies DO work.

Inflexible technology solutions are those that can't configure to your needs out in the field, and ask you to adapt your protocols to their software limitations. Which doesn't make sense, right? If the solution was meant to support your operations, why develop a solution that doesn't have the flexibility to change or grow with you?

Agility requires flexibility.

When it comes to safety, your processes will change. That's the nature of company and system maturity, the result of changing regulations, and unfortunate incidents on job sites. Learnings require adaptation ie, your past informs your future. And a system that does not allow for customizable changes will inherently limit your ability to create or edit important processes and reduce your ability to be implement those changes quickly or effectively. Safety counts on being able to adjust in a timely fashion to keep teams away from danger, and remain productive (having to pause a job if an incident occurs while important changes to the system take place becomes costly).

 

Systems should wrap around you, not the other way around.

Today's world is all about personalization. Think about Netflix, Spotify, Hulu. Consumer technology understands without "you" there is no "them." So they make sure the technology conforms to your needs and desires.

Well we think construction tech, especially safety tech, should as well. Because your safety processes must meet certain regulations for the region, type of build, etc., and who is better at defining those processes? Us? Or you?

You. No doubt about it.

Systems should understand your processes and then configure to them by building flexibility into the software.

For us, that means, we meet with you about your current needs, review your current systems and forms, and then build YOUR system within our software platform.

 

Out of the box capabilities often put you in a box of limitations.

Our system isn't built to box you in like many other software platforms. There is a significant difference between tailoring "out-of-the-box" applications to your needs, versus customizing a completely configurable system designed to your process specifications.

We built our system with flexible modules and data fields that can be adjusted, modified, created, or customized based on what you need out in the field. And those changes can happen fast because we teach YOU the system (which is super easy to learn) and your appointed administrator can go in and change the data fields quickly and easily. (Read: You don't have to wait on anyone to do it for you or be forced to wait until your software vendors can schedule in and ship those technology updates).

For example, we worked with a company who was trying to resolve incidents related to temporary works on an active project. No system out there had an adequate temporary works inspection process. So we helped them build it inside the inspections module. The company create a quick, easy, and effective solution without writing code; we simply showed them how to modify their data fields to capture what they needed and then add it to their list of inspections for teams to be able to access and use. 

 

Documents, processes and data. The big three.

We built our system to follow processes, not documents. What's the difference? When you ask yourself "how does this process work in the field?" you quickly see that digitizing documents reduces paper weight but still impedes operational efficiencies. Because forms and documents are inherently siloed, while data, when pulled from documents, can be woven into other functions seamlessly. That's how our integrated, collaborative system works.

 

Plus, we integrate with other key software, like CMIC and Power BI, so your data can flow as you

 need it to. You can pull or push data, visualize thousands of data points, and start making informed decisions across all of your projects and regions. Because we know, what you don't know is limiting what you can do, and opening you up to more risk. 

 

We know that system flexibility is important to construction. That's why our system was designed to be completely configurable. But what we feel is even more important is how the system works. We don't follow documents like all other systems. We follow processes. That's what makes our software more intuitive and easy to use (and modify, and customize). That's also why leading companies like DPR, are choosing us to manage their safety. 

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