Environmental and Safety Management Information Systems

Photo by Danny Smith

Earlier this week I was privileged to witness a total eclipse of the sun. It was an amazing display of the Lord’s wonderful creation. It is difficult to describe in words the experience as the light starts to fade, the temperature starts to drop, and living things all around you begin to experience confusion as they suddenly think that it has become night.

Operating a company without adequate environmental and safety management information systems in place can be compared to the dark confusion experienced during an eclipse; however, environmental and safety management information systems can be used to illuminate the path to achieve regulatory compliance.

I was recently asked to help a company gain a better handle on environmental compliance requirements at its facilities in multiple states. For many companies that can be a daunting task considering the complexities of environmental regulation involving three different jurisdictional levels of government: federal, state, and local. The problem can be compounded with limited staff resources and competing duties where important tasks can sometimes “fall between the cracks” and lead to non-compliance situations or enforcement actions including penalties. Many people turn to spreadsheets to provide a management solution; however, I think that spreadsheets are a “duct tape and bailing wire” type of solution. Spreadsheets can become unwieldy and are prone to user errors as various people attempt to share the spreadsheet or they may cease to function at all if the one person maintaining the spreadsheet leaves the organization. Spreadsheet management systems might be compared to using a slide rule instead of a calculator. Powerful cloud-based and enterprise-based software solutions are now offered by several different companies to effectively manage environmental and safety compliance responsibilities in place of those antiquated spreadsheets.

Over the last few weeks I talked with numerous environmental health and safety management information system (EHSMIS) service providers and environmental managers from industry to explore and contrast the current cloud-based EHSMIS solutions and identify the critical features to consider. Here are some of the factors to consider.

Cloud-Based vs. Enterprise-Based Systems: I am not an IT person; however, I assume that this is really an issue of perceived control and security. The IT world all around us is increasingly cloud-based. Everyone is familiar with cloud-based services like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc. Enterprise-based systems can be costly to set-up and maintain. New users for most cloud-based services can usually be set-up and operational quickly. Which system is more likely to crash and have problems – an enterprise system you manage or a large cloud-based system? I assume that access security is an issue to be addressed for both cloud-based and enterprise-based systems.

Mobile Access: I think that mobile access to an EHSMIS is a must. Just like other applications you use in life, you should be able to use it from your desktop, laptop, i-pad, and smart phone. Everyone with responsibilities for EHS in the organization should be able to use the system quickly wherever they are to receive reminders of compliance tasks they need to perform and input critical compliance information as tasks are performed, audits are conducted, etc. Modern management systems can provide real-time compliance status and management information on critical issues.

User-Interface: Look for a system that has an intuitive, simple, and easy user interface that requires minimal training. I have experienced the nightmare of using a system with a horrible user interface where employees were required to have weeks of training and memorize complex codes and scroll through hundreds of menus that were irrelevant to most users – it was a nightmare. The user-interface is very important if the system is to be effectively used.

Offline Capabilities: The ability to download inspection and audit data from the system onto a smartphone, laptop, or tablet to use in locations without Internet service can be a valuable tool. Imagine how efficient it would be to prepare for an environmental audit in advance at scattered locations without Internet service and then to quickly upload your findings and even photos into the system later.

Regulatory Compliance Content: At least one of the EHSMIS providers in the market provides their own regulatory content; however, most of the providers incorporate regulatory content from 3rd party providers. You normally must pay an annual license fee to the 3rd party regulatory content provider. The regulatory content is very important as it is used to identify the unique compliance requirements for your organization in the management system. Without the 3rd party regulatory content, you would need to provide and populate the system with the regulatory content yourself; however, I think that doing it yourself might be like “self-help” when you need the care of a hospital medical team with greater subject-matter expertise.

Setting Up the Management Information System: Each type of management information system requires some level of set-up before it becomes operational for your organization. The set-up time can range from a few weeks to ½ year or more depending on many factors including the size of your organization, the regulatory complexity involved, and the type of management system you select. To save cost you might decide to use a system right “out-of-the box” even though it might provide some functionality that is irrelevant to your organization. The extra functionality might make for a less desirable and cluttered user interface. Management information systems can often be tailored to the user to create an optimal interface. Do you wish to adapt to the system or adapt the system to you? System set-up also involves training. Another critical aspect of the set-up process is an analysis of the regulatory content to identify which requirements apply to your facility. The regulatory analysis process involves subject matter experts with the regulatory requirements and subject matter experts familiar with the organization’s operations.

A Comprehensive Approach: Most of the current management information system service providers offer “modules” for safety functions, environmental compliance, auditing, etc. You should evaluate whether to manage those functions collectively using a single platform or using independent service providers.

Costs: The fee structures for different management information systems on the market vary and might include an annual license fee for a set number of users, a system start-up fee, fees for each module (i.e. audit, safety, environmental compliance, etc.), external fees for 3rd party regulatory content, and 3rd party consulting to set up the system, perform any audits, and provide any training. Some providers also charge periodic software update fees.

Customer Service and Support: After the sale is made, you need to evaluate long term customer support. What is the service provider’s customer support reputation? How does customer support work? Is there an added fee for customer support?

Audits: Most of the systems provide users with the capability to generate facility audit checklists and facilitate audits.

Regulatory Compliance Reports: A good management information system either generates or facilitates periodic compliance reports that must be submitted to government agencies.

Compliance Tracking and Notifications: Your management information system must be able to track the management of waste streams, track permit requirements, and notify the appropriate people when important compliance tasks must be performed and let the right people know when those tasks have not been performed.

 Sustainability Performance Metrics: Many organizations now track their performance against certain sustainability metrics that consider their sustainability criteria like their carbon footprint, water footprint, waste footprint, social performance, etc. If you need to track these criteria, it might make sense to ensure that the management information system includes the appropriate functionality.

It is worth clarifying that the term “Environmental Management Systems (EMS)” refers to an organization’s entire management system that includes its environmental compliance procedures, associated training programs, as well as any Environmental Management Information Systems (EMIS) options that are discussed in this article. A management information system is a component within an organization’s overall management system.

If you don’t have an adequate management information system in place, where do you begin? The first step is to identify your needs and performance expectations. The next step is to “test-drive” a few systems to see how they feel and handle.

Primarium can help.