Jessica Karpinski

Job Site Transparency: On-site visibility for safety and productivity Track’em December 30, 2022 Few industries have more of an impact on the functionality of society than construction, fuel, and mining. Job sites for those industries must run efficiently so that necessary structures can be constructed, oil can be sourced, and minerals can be mined. With so many professionals moving from job site to job site, it is easy for information relating to their whereabouts to fall through the cracks. The documentation of the location of a company’s workforce is often completed using antiquated methods of paper and pen or outdated software. This inefficient manner to track the workforce opens up the job site to confusion and miscommunications that could result in mistakes and even safety hazards. Construction, oil and gas, and mining sites have large, very technical, complex workforces. The progress of a project could be brought to a halt through confusion or miscommunication about the location of the workers. This white paper will outline: the current and outdated systems that are being used for timesheet management and progress the risks of using outdated systems the problem with waiting to upgrade a labour management system an example of an updated management solution that can streamline processes for businesses Outdated systems While the rest of the world has adapted to the influx of technology, with emerging industries such as financial technology, educational technology, and agricultural technology, the construction, fuel, and mining industries have not been as quick to embrace productivity software that can streamline processes. Outdated systems of record keeping, such as those which are done manually, are time-consuming and often riddled with errors. Data Pollution The outdated systems are often being choked by data pollution, which contaminates the information supply of the workforce with irrelevant, redundant, unsolicited, hampering, and low-value information. This data pollution often causes workers to be overpaid and underpaid. Overpayment and underpayment have more consequences than just one payment. If overpayment should occur and the company catches the error, it will take time and even more money to remedy the situation as the company will have to pay someone to fix it; underpayment could result in accusations of wage theft and lawsuits, thus causing the company to pay even more money for these errors. Double Recording These old and inefficient methods of workforce documentation could also cause double recording. According to a study completed in part by management consulting firm FMI Corp, the construction industry loses nearly $1.8 trillion from bad data every year. Bad data most likely occurs due to human error which is seen a lot more in manual processes than digital processes. Paper Managing The role of Project Managers (PMs) on sites is to manage the project, not manage the paperwork. However, schedules, approvals of activities, progress updates, work orders, etc. can create a mountain of paperwork for the project manager. Even if the paperwork is digitised, it is often scattered throughout different programs and systems, so accessing the information is cumbersome and it can be difficult to find which program specific information is located. A PM should be applying their management skills to the workforce in the field to create a cohesive crew and a smooth-running project. Risks PMs need to know who is on which site and when. A company can open itself to a myriad of liabilities if it doesn’t properly document its workforce. It’s important to have this process streamlined for the safety of the workforce, the company, and the community. Furthermore, having a steady knowledge of the location of the workforce enables PMs to manage both the workforce and project better, keeping it on track and on schedule. Accidents In a disturbing trend that was reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, it was found that fatal work injuries increased by nearly 9% between 2020 and 2021. These workplace injuries generally happen because of accidents, which are usually avoidable. Accidents, injuries, and deaths on-site can happen due to a worker being at the wrong place at the wrong time. If an inexperienced worker gets put onto a complex site without much training, that worker is more likely to be in an accident due to sheer confusion. PMs need to know who is on which site, specifically sites that require more credentials, such as confined space training. Theft Theft is a costly reality for many construction sites. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the theft of copper alone from sites amounts to $1 billion annually. While theft can be carried out by people who are not on the job site, it is also a very real possibility that those on site can be taking materials or equipment as well. If money is leaking out of a job over time from lost or stolen materials, a PM needs to know who is on that site so they can be questioned and/or caught with the materials. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) investigations A company composed of more than 10 employees is actually required by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to keep a record of all workplace injuries and illnesses. If a situation should occur that a company or job site is subject to an OSHA investigation, the government-backed entity will not find it acceptable if records are disorganised or unable to be located. The potential spread of airborne illnesses (COVID-19) As the world shut down from the spread of COVID-19, construction workers, miners, and drillers did not have the luxury of working from home. They still showed up to work every day in person. It quickly became evident that COVID-19 cases needed to be tracked and many sites used the same system they have been using for decades to track their workers: a clipboard and pen. On sites with hundreds of people completing forms declaring that they were experiencing no symptoms of COVID-19, the paperwork piled up. It was difficult to know who was where when there had been a known case of COVID-19. Entire sites and floors of buildings had to be shut down and cleaning crews brought in. Paper tracking may have been sufficient in a world where highly-contagious and sometimes deadly viruses weren’t running rampant, but we no longer live in that world. It is essential that professionals in the workforce are accurately tracked in case of a contagious airborne illness. The problem with waiting to update systems Considering that the old sign-in sheet has been the system by which companies and PMs track workers for decades now, it may be asked “What’s the rush to change if the system has been used for so long? If it has “worked” so far, then why change it?” The fact is that it hasn’t been working and even worse, job site safety has become worse in recent years. As previously mentioned, job site fatalities have actually increased in recent years. Clearly, something is not working so yes, right now is the time to improve systems because every day that goes by is another day where an accident could happen due to outdated methods of workforce documentation. Could be losing money Another risk of delaying the upgrade of a labour management system is the risk of losing money. Every day that goes by is a day where a project could be losing money due to unnecessary delays. According to the 2020 National Construction Payment Report, 70% of construction companies say that the main reason their projects run over budget or past deadlines is due to poor job site coordination. Every day that a project doesn’t hit its target is a day that the project could get pushed back. If the project is delayed over the course of three months, it is a nightmare to play catch up. Streamlining processes today can get a PM ahead before they get behind. Furthermore, project management can be challenging because the information is scattered throughout different software programs. The time that it takes to find that information and then apply it to the project’s context can take up hours of the day. The data needs to be consolidated from all the different sources and connected into one platform so the PM can quickly gain access to information that will help them manage the project. Could be missing opportunities In the same vein as losing money from projects running over budget or past deadlines is the potential for missed opportunities. How can a company start another project if the last one isn’t finished yet? The workforce that is meant to be on the next project needs to stay on the current project until it is completed. Have that happen a few times and a company’s reputation can easily be one for being unreliable to initiate big-dollar projects. Utilize a sophisticated labour management system to streamline and expedite projects The workforce is what keeps companies and industries afloat. The consequences for not accurately documenting the workforce can be financial or fatal, neither of which is ever wanted by a PM or their company. To ensure that a PM can accurately document their workforce and manage a site to peak productivity and efficiency, utilize a sophisticated labour management system. This updated system can help with the aforementioned: Outdated systems It can digitise time management on construction sites by managing schedules and approvals of workforce activities on the cloud instead of in a pile of paperwork. The information on this system is up-to-date and shows the progress of projects and individual tasks so that if the project is slowing for whatever reason, it can be remedied immediately. Additionally, paperwork, such as work orders, approvals, reports, and timesheets can be completed within a fraction of the time it would take to do manually and they are all accessible 24/7. Risks A labor management system can lodge, schedule, and oversee individual and team operations. The PM will know who is assigned to which activity, how long it takes them, and the progress on that specific aspect of the project. Work orders and activities can also be tracked so that if theft does occur, it can easily be traced. Everything is documented in one place so if detailed information needs to be submitted to OSHA or other regulatory bodies, it is readily available. Delaying updating systems The rewards for updating the system from an old, manual one to a sophisticated, streamlined one will be seen daily. PMs can create schedules, and manage timesheets by approving, rejecting, and printing them in minutes. Nothing will fall through the cracks as the system sends an automated notification for required approvals and can show insights on time and activities on site. Job sites are often hindered by antiquated record-keeping systems that are time-consuming and sometimes inaccurately document the workforce on the site. Give your PMs extra time to manage their projects with a modern labour management system today.