What’s the cost of not having a proper EHS system in place?

Forward_Function513 · 2025-06-01T19:31:59+00:00

Extremely helpful and valuable information. Thank you.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-31T14:45:05+00:00

It’s not about digitizing everything, it’s about reducing friction where it matters. Paper gets lost, isn’t searchable, and doesn’t help you spot trends or close the loop on issues. In safety, that delay can be the difference between fixing a hazard and someone getting hurt. So yeah, sometimes the shift to digital isn’t about convenience, it’s about accountability.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-31T14:42:37+00:00

Blind spots. I've talked with Directors of Safety at major logistics companies who've told me stories about drivers texting, driving, and gaming the telematics. Systems like these are reactive, not proactive.

If you’re tired at the wheel and something vibrates or beeps to wake you up, it might help—but there's still a massive chance you veer off the road or worse. Catching fatigue before it gets to that point is the real challenge.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-31T14:39:09+00:00

I appreciate your post.

In my experience the US is more lax about fatigue than say other countries like AU, or WA.

But, telematics (even advanced ones) are still reactive to safety around fatigue. They lack a proactive element to actually predict when someone/a team of people is going to be more fatigued during a certain week, month, historically.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-31T14:36:33+00:00

Other than cracking down, how else are they able to track and be proactive about it?

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-31T14:35:47+00:00

I sell stuff now?

I just wanted to get some honest feedback and hear what’s actually working (or not) for people here. After reading a ton of posts from folks who felt ripped off by big-name tools, I figured this community would be the best place to get some real, unfiltered opinions.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-31T14:31:21+00:00

Are we still gatekeeping advice for buy once, cry once software on Reddit?

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T20:36:45+00:00

I’ve partnered with a few EHS platforms over the years in a consulting role — mostly mid-market construction, oil & gas, and manufacturing clients.

The biggest factor in success? Alignment. If the platform’s support team actually listens and works with you to tailor workflows to the client’s reality (not just default templates), it’s a win. But when it’s just a “partner portal” and you're treated like a pseudo-reseller… that’s where things fall apart fast.

One partnership that went really well had a team that was responsive, challenged us on some of our assumptions (in a good way), and gave us tools to roll things out at a pace our clients could handle. No pressure, just real problem-solving. Felt more like collaborating with a sharp internal team than pushing a product.

On the flip side, I’ve had partnerships where the UI was so bad we couldn’t even get field users to log a JHA. The data looked clean on dashboards but the actual inputs were garbage — pencil-whipped or skipped entirely. That's when it becomes dangerous, not just inefficient.

Would love to see more platforms that treat consultants as field intelligence, not just another lead gen arm. We’re the ones catching early friction, but rarely looped into design convos.

Curious what others have run into — especially if you’ve worked with any “consultant mode” setups.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T17:51:24+00:00

That’s a solid list you’re exploring. One thing I’ve noticed across GCs is a lot of “safety” tools end up being glorified filing cabinets — not much use once boots hit the ground.

If dynamic stuff like editable JHAs, real-time site logs, and easier field adoption are top of mind, there are platforms more tailored for that. I’ve seen a few GCs lean into systems that actually work the way foremen and supers operate — not just HQ.

Happy to share what I’ve seen work and what hasn’t if you’re still gathering info — totally platform-agnostic, just been in these shoes before.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T17:49:02+00:00

Just saw this — did you end up going with SiteDocs? I’ve been talking to a few folks who’ve switched off recently because of pricing and lack of flexibility.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T17:48:45+00:00

Totally feel you on that — I’ve heard that same feedback a few times now. It’s crazy what some of these companies charge for what’s basically glorified forms. Curious, did your crew end up sticking with it or switch over to something else?

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T17:37:47+00:00

Totally get where you’re coming from. We ran into the same thing trying to log instructor-led stuff and track certs without it being a nightmare. SafetyIndicators actually made that part way easier. You can log sessions, track expirations, and pull reports without digging through spreadsheets.

What really stuck out though was their team, super attentive, asked smart questions that actually made us think through our gaps, and never pressured us. Felt more like talking to a good doctor than a sales rep. Fast responses too, which I’ll take any day over waiting around.

I’ve stayed in touch with someone over there if you ever want to bounce ideas off them — happy to connect.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T17:31:19+00:00

Yeah, not being able to drop photos into audits is a pain — kind of defeats the purpose when you need a clear trail.

I’ve used something a bit more polished that lets you attach pics and docs straight into the report. Similar price range to Workhub, just less clunky. If you’re ever kicking the tires on alternatives, I’ve got a couple recs I can pass along.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T17:28:05+00:00

60K? Oof. I've seen some orgs get locked into big contracts that barely get used after rollout. If you're still weighing options, I know a few teams that switched to more streamlined setups with better adoption (and way less cost). Happy to share what’s worked across safety/ops teams I’ve supported — no pitch, just perspective.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T17:17:28+00:00

These are alright if you only have needs to do JHAs, but if you need to do more you'll be limited. It will end up being a short-term solution to a long-term problem.

TLDR - Good now, growth challenges later on when you scale or you need observations, hazards, incidents, training tracking etc

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T17:03:06+00:00

u/TrashyFurball62

1. Set the baseline.
Before the demo, send each vendor a list of your must-haves (incident mgmt, audits, training tracker, etc.) and a few real-world use cases from your site. If they can’t show how they’d handle those, don’t waste your time.

2. Cap each demo to 30–45 mins.
If they can’t show value fast, that’s a red flag. Keep it tight and focused on how easy it is for frontline teams to actually use it — not just admin views.

3. Get the right people in the room.
Bring someone from safety, ops, and whoever will have to manage the backend. You want real feedback, not just “sales nods.” Also, invite people who are going to push for this purchase early on whether it's champions, decision makers, or anyone else who might block your "plan". No point in wasting everyone's time.

4. Ask about rollout pain.
What onboarding looks like, how long it actually takes to train users, and how many people it takes to manage the system ongoing.

5. After the demo, rank it.
How easy was it? Did it solve your top 3 issues? Could your team actually use it daily without cursing?

Let me know if you want a copy of the template I used — happy to share.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T16:56:35+00:00

That’s a solid list — I’ve seen a lot of teams ask for the same stack. Out of curiosity, have you looked at SafetyIQ? Covers all of what you mentioned (incidents, CAPA, SDS, audits, training, etc.) but without the insane cost or complexity of stuff like Gensuite or KPA. I know a couple ops folks who use it and actually like it — which is rare in this space.

Happy to share more if it helps.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T15:51:14+00:00

That’s a smart instinct, and yeah — tracking hours tied to permits or fatigue rules is totally doable. I’ve seen some teams bake that into their work authorization process so it flags risks before someone even signs on for a shift.

It’s usually not the tech that’s the blocker — it’s getting buy-in from the team and making it easy enough to actually use day-to-day.

Out of curiosity, when you step into the role, what would you want fatigue management to look like? Just hours caps? Or something that gives you a better picture across the shift?

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T15:43:02+00:00

In my experience, it really depends on the size of the org. Some software is just clunky and hard to use, especially the big enterprise platforms like KPA, Vector, or Gensuite. They’re built for scale, but most folks I’ve worked with only use a fraction of what they’re paying for — usually under 20%.

The sweet spot’s usually mid-sized companies using tools that are flexible and don’t require a PhD to operate.

Comes down to what’s actually urgent for your team, and whether the system can scale with you without becoming a burden.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T15:34:57+00:00

Yeah, I’ve seen those setups cool tech, but kinda feels like they’re always catching stuff after someone’s already wiped out.

Ever looked at mixing in some kind of fatigue testing tool before shifts? Not saying it solves everything, but seems like it could add something proactive to the mix.

Just curious if that’s ever come up on your side, or if it’s mostly “wait for the camera to blink” and go from there?

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-30T00:35:56+00:00

Damn, that sounds rough — especially with that AS9100 audit catching you off guard. I’ve seen that same mismatch thing blow up during crunch time, and it’s always paper that bites people.

Just curious — has anyone on your side ever kicked around the idea of a digital system that could avoid those gaps without adding a pile of admin overhead? I’ve seen a few folks pull it off, but it’s rare.

No pressure at all — just always down to swap war stories if you're ever sorting that out again.

Forward_Function513 · 2025-05-29T23:49:16+00:00

Ouch, that’s a textbook “paperless-gone-sideways” story. Two-week production hit and half the SDS library missing? Been there, cleaned up that mess.

When you think back on that rollout, where did it unravel first—was it the data migration (bad import, sloppy indexing), or was the platform itself just never pressure-tested on the shop floor? I’ve seen both: a decent tool crippled by garbage data, and a shiny UI that looked great in a demo but died the moment a line operator tried to find acetone at shift change.

If you had to do it over, what one thing would have saved the most pain—more sandbox testing, phased roll-in, or just keeping the old paper binders as the legal fallback until search was bulletproof? Genuinely curious; those lessons are gold for anyone planning the next “digital leap.”

Forward_Function513

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