For example: “You can decide as an organization that this Monday you are teaching 6-foot-and-deeper trench safety,” McGough says. “You can push out the documents to the foremen so they have the latest sheets. This way, you know that everyone in our organization is being delivered the same message.”

This can be especially important if, McGough says, “God forbid you have an incident and someone gets hurt. If OSHA comes by, you can show how someone has been trained and when. You have it at your fingertips instead of in a box somewhere.”

RISKY BUSINESS

HCSS COO Steve McGough says there are five safety factors on which contractors often underestimate risk:

1. Work zone safety

a. High-visibility garments on all workers

b. Collisions in the work zone

2. Dangers of backing equipment

3. Excavation and trenching

4. Fall prevention and protection on elevated surfaces

5. Night work