This is the final installment of a four-part series. Click to read Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
Identifying and managing hazards is an essential part of creating the safe work environment construction workers need and, ultimately, the success of any project. However, risk management can become complex as it comprises of multiple repetitive processes that can run for years, depending on the size of a project. Safety mobile forms are very effective in this regard.
Impact of Safety Forms on Risk Management Efforts
By mobilizing the safety forms used for risk management, construction firms can begin reaping the following benefits within a month.
Better Picture of Safety Risks
Mobile forms aren’t limited to text. They can include different forms of data such as images, videos, and even sound files. These offer more clarity than paragraphs. Moreover, data from safety mobile forms can easily and quickly be processed in analytics systems. This allows experts to swiftly assess risks and determine the control measures or risk mitigation strategy required.
Streamlined Safety Risk Mitigation
With dashboard integrations, risk management experts can easily view risks in order of importance. In addition to preventing project failure, this prevents company failure over the long run due to reasons such as:
- Unrealistic growth (e.g. taking on multiple projects)
- Accounting issues (e.g. insufficient cost and time tracking)
- Performance issues (e.g. lack of staff)
Prompt Responses to Health and Safety Risks
Digitized data entered via mobile forms can easily be processed to determine which risk management technique is most suitable. For instance, the risk of possible injuries due to the weather will prompt managers to delay working on the project for the day, ensure proper safety equipment and measures, or come up with another method to lessen the impact of the risk.
Designing Mobile Forms for Risk Management
Not only do mobilized safety forms spare risk managers from being buried under never-ending piles of paperwork, they streamline the steps required for effective hazard management. Before you begin designing your own set of forms, take note of the following tips to get this task right.
Determine Which Forms to Mobilize
Ideally, you should be able to transform all your paper forms into mobile forms. However, some forms aren’t suitable for this purpose. Take for instance paper forms which collect qualitative data or long, open-ended responses. These forms require a lot of typing, which defeats the purpose of mobile data collection.
If you have the time, you can plan how to mobilize these forms before designing them. For instance, you can predict possible answers and display them either as a drop down menu or segmented control. Add a small text field afterwards for safety experts to write down their concerns.
Carefully Plan the Structure of Your Mobile Forms
A golden rule of mobile form design is to ensure it creates logical communication between the user and the app. To pull this off, keep in mind the following pointers:
- Only ask about the information you really need.
- Order fields logically from a user’s perspective. For instance, place Type of Risk before the Details text field.
- Group related information in logical blocks or different tabs. This reduces the chances of error by helping users make sense of the information they fill in.
Include Fields for Assigning Hazard Priorities and Values for Probability and Consequences
Based on our experts’ experience, mobile forms for risk management should include fields which allow employees to set priorities for hazards as well as assess probability and consequences. This data is valuable for further risk analysis and to ensure the safety of your construction site.
Preferably, choose segmented controls for entering this data. This allows data to be communicated quickly. Users only need to tap on a value between 1 and 5 to indicate the severity of the risks they detect.
Allow the Upload of Images and Video for Added Clarity
To further reduce the need to type text, include fields which allow users to upload images, audio, and/or video as well. These files can be attached to your forms to provide off site employees with a better idea of the risks reported.
The Bottom Line
Mobile forms have a major role to play in ensuring construction site safety – from ensuring safety compliance, to enhancing worker safety, and all the way to managing risks through the project cycle. If your company is yet to embrace this technology, you are behind many of the construction industry’s leaders.
Luckily, you can begin testing whether mobile forms are right for your enterprise. Simply download the free Ready2Use Forms app and try its growing collection of health and safety forms. If you want, you can later upgrade to using Makeen transform’ Transform Studio and create your own set of forms to add.
So, jump on the mobile forms for safety bandwagon to avoid compromising your site, workforce, and company as a whole.
