How Mobile and Cloud Technologies Can Give Contractors Access to Worker Training Records at the Jobsite

It’s crucial for construction companies to ensure updated worker training records are available to supervisors and inspectors in the field. Contractors must make sure that only qualified employees are tackling potentially hazardous jobs. It’s a foundation of safety.

 

A wide range of people need easy access to these training records, including:

Foremen - they need to know who is trained and credentialed to be put on a particular task. They don’t have the luxury of waiting. They need to know immediately.

Inspectors - they need access to worker training records to verify conformance with regulatory policies.

Auditors - they need them to track safety records and identify areas for remediation.

Safety officers - these professionals need them so that only verified workers will do particular tasks, thereby preventing accidents. 

Training managers - they need them to plan for additional training and re-certification courses.

Headquarters administrative staff - they need access to assign staff to jobs.

Finally, the worker himself - he needs access to his own records so he or she will have ample warning of expiring certifications and be able to sign up for recertification on time.

The oldest technology, paper, doesn’t work well. Paper flunks in terms of both ease of access and being up-to-date. Spreadsheets are a step up, but they are just too difficult to access in the field.

The cloud is the latest technology, which can drastically improve the validation processes. Data in the cloud is always accessible by authorized users. Any person or device with access to the web can get the most current data from the cloud.

And the cloud is not affected by a power outage or computer shutdown at headquarters. It’s always available.

Smartphones, tablets and wireless networks ensure access to the web virtually everywhere.

To tie all this together, Quick Response (QR) codes are the key. The QR code is the black-and-white square often seen in magazine advertisements and on labels. It’s a proven, inexpensive technology.

Here’s how it works. A unique QR code is generated and assigned to each employee. The code is then imprinted on the worker’s ID card and/or hardhat.

QR codes can be read with the camera of any smartphone or tablet. Linking to the employee’s profile on the cloud, the code gives the user access to:

This isn’t pie-in-the-sky technology. Many construction companies have already implemented jobsite credential verification via ID cards and mobile devices. They are outsourcing the job efficiently to a provider with a track record of success.