A case management system that consolidates all of the Health and Safety Authority’s (HSA) dealings with employees, representative bodies and members of the public has been deployed.
The contract was awarded to Irish technology firm Version 1. Over a year and 2,500 man-hours in development, the GeoSMART application features workflow and collaboration functionality, which significantly improves how cases and inspections are assigned, co-ordinated and tracked within the HSA.
A sophisticated geographical mapping capability gives management enhanced data visualisation, aiding logistics and planning.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) built into the system allow senior managers to instantly access information about the authority’s progression against the programme of work at a national, area and team level.
“Version 1 was awarded the contract to design, build, deploy and support the system because of a demonstrated ability to really understand our business requirements and to leverage cutting-edge technology to enable proactive decision making within the authority through ease of access to our business data,” the HSA’s enforcement process development manager Jim Holmes explained.
“We believe our new system is a model of excellence for regulatory bodies and have already received and serviced requests to present its capabilities to Irish and European regulatory authorities,” Holmes added.
The HSA is a state-sponsored body under the aegis of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, funded by the Exchequer.
The authority has statutory responsibility for promoting and enforcing safe working practices in all employment sectors and for developing and enforcing relevant legislation.
“A huge amount of effort on both sides went into delivering GeoSMART, and this joint commitment to the project has really paid off,” said John Collins, solutions manager at Version 1.
“The authority will gain immediate business benefit through improved reporting and operational planning. Long term, costs will be significantly reduced through process automation, and we expect the system to pay for itself in under three years.”
By John Kennedy