By Kaitlin Frank
From an industry perspective all the way down to an individual job site, we can always be safer. So, how do we improve? Well, it starts by being mindful of safety best practices as it relates to your work and the overall job site. And then documentation — whether via traditional paper-based processes or using a digital tool like eMOD — is crucial. As we often say around here, “If you’re not documenting safety, how are you tracking it? And if you’re not tracking it, how do you improve?”
We designed the eMOD construction safety Audits and Observations features to help safety officers, superintendents and foremen document, and ultimately improve, the on-the-ground safety of projects. But we also created it in a way that allows safety officers and construction executives to monitor and optimize their safety performance at all levels — from individual tasks, projects, and specific contractors to whole company performance over time.
So, let’s take a closer look at eMOD’s construction safety Audits and Observations features and see how they can help make construction safer for everyone.
eMOD Construction Safety Audits
Construction project superintendents and trade foremen are typically responsible for performing regular safety audits of their job sites. At a minimum, they perform these audits weekly — though as a superintendent, I typically do these daily for each job that I manage.
Essentially, an audit is a checklist or inspection that we go through to help us verify that everything on a job site is in order — and that the work is being done safely. These checklists can vary based on the type of work being done — and the associated hazards of that work.
To perform construction safety Audits in eMOD, you start by choosing a category (as shown below in a mock template I created). Once you choose that category, you’ll see the checklist associated with that Audit. As the user, I can then check “compliant,” “not compliant,” or “NA” (not applicable) for each item.
One of the big benefits to using eMOD for construction safety audits is that it can be customized at a company level and each project can have multiple types of audits. Depending on what areas, items or tasks you are inspecting that day, the user can select the appropriate audit for the task at hand.
Another important feature: In eMOD, when you identify a construction safety Audit item as “not compliant,” it will automatically create and prompt you to complete an Observation.
eMOD Observations
Once you create an Observation, you add any related background information — from notes and location to photos of the hazard or violation. Below, you can see a mock observation I’ve created.
This becomes an important record of hazards and safety violations — and, importantly, the app establishes a workflow to address the Observation.
You can assign the issue directly to a person or company that’s responsible. And since eMOD is used by everyone involved in an entire project, the app will send an SMS message to the person(s) who needs to take action. That observation will remain active until it is resolved. At any time, anyone on the job can see all of the unresolved observations.
You might think that assigning observations is the equivalent of blaming someone for bad safety behavior. But that’s not how most users take advantage of this important feature. On a typical day, I make 2-3 observations per job site that I manage. By documenting these hazards we are highlighting areas where the job site needs improvement. If a company sees that many projects are having similar observations being created, this draws attention to the safety department that additional support or training is needed.
Also, within the Observations feature lies one of my favorite aspects of the eMOD app: Safety Recognition. As one type of Observation, you can highlight exemplary safety practices and tag any individuals that are going above and beyond when it comes to safety. We use this as a way to give kudos and say thank you. It’s not often enough we say thank you in the field. It’s important to celebrate those who consistently meet safety standards — and go above and beyond to make projects safer for everyone involved.
Benefits of eMOD’s Construction Safety Audits and Observations
One of the most important benefits of eMOD’s construction safety Audits and Observations features is how they are integrated in one app. In other apps and paper-based processes, completing audits might be done with one tool — but addressing hazards (and observations) happens with a whole different workflow. In eMOD, a project’s Audits and Observations are linked — you can see all the Observations that are linked to an Audit, project, company, or person, along with any construction safety Audits that are linked to a project. eMOD users love eMOD because it’s an all-in-one safety platform — helping make safety administration much more efficient.
Here are some of the other reasons eMOD users love our Audits and Observations features:
- Transparency: Anyone eMOD user on a particular job can see Audits and Observations at any time including the history and updates. Everyone has access to these important documents.
- Accountability: Because observations are assigned to people or teams, it’s ultimately their task to resolve them.
- Motivation: Praise doesn’t come near enough on the job site. A Safety Recognition is one small way superintendents and foremen can give kudos to their hard-working crews.
- Documentation: As I wrote in the opening, it’s hard to improve something if you don’t have a record to know how you’re doing. However, there’s another important reason for Audits and Observations: If OSHA or any local authorities come by the job site, you’ll have a record that shows all the steps you’ve taken to make the job site safer.
- Safety improvement: By using a digital tool like eMOD to track performance over time, your team can much more easily spot trends and improve your overall safety practices.
About eMOD
Founded in 2017, eMOD is a team of experienced commercial construction superintendents, project managers, and safety officers from San Francisco-based Dome Construction. Safety is more than our passion; we’ve built a company and a product dedicated to making our industry safer. The eMOD Safety App is designed for the next generation of construction owners, insurance companies, general contractors, and trade partners. We not only built the app, we use it every day. Contact us to set up a demo today.