Using Environmental Health and Safety Compliance Management Software to Drive Continuous Improvement

Environmental, health and safety compliance- increase in employee involvement;
management software is used to capture and control- increase in community goodwill; and
a variety of important regulatory information and- many others.
data. This data can include regulatory requirementQuestions to Ask
task management, corrective action information,When selecting a compliance management software
accident and incident information, chemical andsolution, the selection team will need to consider and
hazardous substance information, industrial hygieneanswer several important questions. These questions
exposure assessment data, and environmentalinclude:
emissions and release information. Often, the reason- How many people will need access to the system?
for capturing this data is to fulfill or meet some- What level of access will they need?
regulatory requirement, but companies choosing to- How scalable will the system need to be?
implement and maintain an compliance management- Will the system be multi-facility?
software solution should take a broader view and- Will the system be multi-country? And will language
look to these systems for driving continuoustranslation and internationalization be necessary?
improvement in their organizations.After answering these questions, the selection team
Types of Continuous Improvementsshould then develop a table listing all the user
The types of continuous improvements that can bespecifications and requirements. Each one should be
gained from effectively analyzing the informationidentified as a "must have", "nice to have", or "not
capture in the compliance software system arenecessary." Keep in mind, that if you're an
many. Continuous improvement projects can result ininternational company, that your selection team
the following benefits:should include individuals from outside of the U.S.
- a reduction in the time required to completeOnce the key requirements have been compiled,
regulatory compliance related tasks;then product information can be obtained, and on-line
- elimination or reduction in the use of hazardousdemonstrations can be scheduled. When viewing the
chemicals or substances;demonstrations, ask yourself "Is this the type of
- reduction in accidents and incidents;information that can help drive continuous
- reduction in compliance violations;improvement in my organization?" If not, you should
- accelerating the time to market for new products;consider another solution.