ISN Insider

This Year’s Conference The 2017 VPPPA Safety & Health Conference will take place in New Orleans, Louisiana at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center from August 29 – September 1, 2017. Thousands of attendees will be able to learn from health and safety leaders in over 100 educational sessions. Join the Conversation Richard Cerenzio, Director of the Health, Safety & Environmental Review and Verification Services Team at ISN, will present on August 29th from 4:00-5:00pm in a session titled “What is Best-in-Class Contractor Management?” Richard will discuss the challenges and opportunities associated with establishing a robust contractor management strategy. The presentation will focus on addressing 10 best-in-class attributes for effective contractor management. A long-standing member of the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), Richard currently serves on various committees including the National Safety Council’s (NSC) Campbell Institute Contractor Management Workgroup, the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) Oil & Gas Council, and is the past chair and current member of the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) Workforce Development Committee. Visit our Booth The ISN team will be located at Booth #1239 throughout the conference. Stop by to discuss your contractor management goals and learn more about ISN. We will be providing live demonstrations of our online contractor management platform, ISNetworld, and have copies of ISN’s white paper, “What is Best-in-Class in Contractor Management?” and ISN’s health and safety benchmarking reports available. We look forward to seeing you there.

There are no shortcuts for improving workplace safety performance and reducing the impact of industrial activities on the environment. It takes dedication, discipline and a strong safety culture. In an effort to exceed today’s environmental, health and safety standards, Dow Benelux B.V., a subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company, has implemented ISNetworld as its online contractor management solution. Drive to Zero Located in Terneuzen, Zeeland for over 50 years, Dow Benelux has the second-largest Dow Chemical plant in the world. As a global company, Dow requires all of its employees and contractors to adhere to strict safety standards. Over the years, the Terneuzen site has been recognized for especially low accident rates. As part of Dow’s global “Drive to Zero” accident reduction campaign, Dow Benelux is continually looking for ways to build on its successes while strengthening its contractor management practices. “After assessing the effectiveness of our programs and the available options out there, we decided that ISNetworld has the functionality we need to streamline and standardize our internal procedures for pre-qualifying contractors in the region,” says Jan Jaap van Buuren of Dow Terneuzen. “Further, as we strive for zero accidents at our site, ISNetworld will help us to continue fostering a culture where safety is central to everything we do.” Expanding Relationships in the Netherlands This latest implementation is also an important milestone, as it represents ISN’s second in the Netherlands. “We value the relationship we have built with The Dow Chemical Company over the past 15 years and look forward to continuing our successful relationship with them in the Netherlands,” says Brittany Surine, Senior Director for ISN’s EMEA region. More information To learn more about how this may impact Dow Benelux and its stakeholders in the region, please take a moment to read this implementation letter or visit us at ISNetworld.com.    

The 18th annual Call Center Week (CCW) Excellence Awards were held on Tuesday, June 27th. The CCW Awards were created to recognize companies for their innovation and excellence in the customer care industry. The awards are dedicated to recognizing superior thinking, creativity and execution across the full spectrum of call center functions. ISN’s commitment to excellence in Customer Service was recognized at the CCW Awards this year by achieving runner up for the Best-in-Class Contact Center category (100-199 seats). This is the third year in a row that ISN has achieved this award. Belinda Field, Associate Vice President at ISN, says, “It is an honor to achieve this award for the third straight year. We are continually making improvements to better serve our customers and to be recognized by CCW is a true testament of our efforts.” To learn more details about the 18th annual CCW Excellence Awards, please click here.

OSHA recently proposed that their electronic reporting compliance deadline of July 1, 2017 be moved to December 1, 2017, allowing for additional review into questions of law and policy. They are accepting comments on this delay proposal, which can be submitted electronically at www.regulations.gov, until July 13, 2017. Employers with 250 employees or more, who are required to keep record of workplace injuries, will now be required to submit their injury and illness data electronically to OSHA, including 300A summaries and 300 logs. Employers with 20-249 employees in certain high-risk industries, listed here, must electronically submit their 300A summary. To view the OSHA Final Rule on the Federal Register please click here. To assist with keeping track of your company’s OSHA 300 log, ISNetworld has a SmartLog Tool available as part of each contractor company’s subscription. The SmartLog Tool aids in properly classifying cases and produces a completed OSHA 300 log and 300A summary ready for signature when necessary. Please contact the ISN Customer Service team by phone, email or chat at www.isnetworld.com/contact-us if you would like assistance using SmartLog.

Mark your calendars for the 2018 ISN CONNECT Conference taking place on Tuesday, May 1st & Wednesday, May 2nd at the OMNI Dallas Hotel in Dallas, Texas. Join thousands of customers to network, share best practices, discuss industry initiatives and attend thought-provoking keynote and breakout sessions. Attendees will have the opportunity to: Attend breakout sessions focused on ISNetworld functionality enhancements, as well as regulatory, industry, health, safety & environmental (HSE) and procurement best practices Network with industry leaders, Hiring Clients, contractor customers and the ISN Team Attend hands-on and usability labs as well as one-on-one training with the ISN Team to assist with account-specific questions Learn how to benchmark your company’s performance against your peers Earn Continuing Education Units (CEUs), Certification Maintenance Points (CMPs) or credits to include in a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) program Registration is coming soon. Visit www.isnconnect.com to stay informed on ISN CONNECT. We look forward to seeing you in Dallas.  

ISN is pleased to announce the opening of a new office in Perth, Australia on July 1 to meet the growing demand for its contractor management expertise in Western Australia and across the region. With offices in Sydney and Auckland, ISN has had a presence in the Asia Pacific region for almost 10 years. Growing ISN’s Presence in Western Australia “Our new office in Perth allows us to better serve our expanding customer base in Western Australia,” says Brian Callahan, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of ISN. “Over the years, we’ve met with many Australian companies that want to protect the safety of workers on their job sites, and we look forward to helping them improve their contractor management processes.” Jenny Buckley, Director of ISN’s Australia and New Zealand offices, also says, “Today’s leading companies need safe contractors to support their safety culture. With our experience helping Hiring Clients and contractors alike, we’ve seen what works, and the team in our Perth office is eager to share those best practices.” Making Zero Accidents a Reality Between 2003 and 2015, over 3,200 workers lost their lives in work-related incidents in Australia.  While the number of yearly fatalities decreased over the 15-year period, an increasing number of companies across industries – particularly energy, construction, manufacturing and mining – have been partnering with ISN to strengthen their health, safety and environmental (HSE) practices in an effort to make zero accidents a reality.    

Site Tracker is a tool in ISNetworld, ISN’s online platform, that helps customers track site or project specific HSE performance data, including contractor work hours, incidents, near misses, miles driven and other site-specific information. Representing more than 515 million work hours and 2,170 self-reported incidents, the statistics captured in ISNetworld’s Site Tracker tool provide a unique picture of the nature of occupational health and safety incidents in the U.S. in 2016. Hiring Clients are able to gain deeper insight on contractor performance specific to a project or site using the Site Tracker Tool. The upper extremities are the most frequently injured part of the body among the incidents reported. Traumatic injuries comprises 90% of reported incidents. More than 135 Hiring Clients across 13 capital-intensive industries in the U.S. use this tool to track site-specific information. To view the entire report, click here. To request a copy of ISN’s publications, including white papers and benchmarking reports, visit ISN’s Publications.      

The 2017 PPSA Conference will take place June 18-21 at the Charleston Marriott in Charleston, South Carolina. The PPSA conference will provide updates on the constantly-evolving safety and regulatory environment. Attendees will also benefit from case studies focused on improving workplace safety. Visit our Booth The ISN team will be available in the expo hall at Booth 20 throughout the conference. Stop by to discuss your contractor management goals and learn more about our online contractor management platform, ISNetworld. We will be providing live demonstrations of ISNetworld and sharing our industry-wide benchmarking reports. We hope to see you there.      

The ISN Customer Service Team hosts webcast sessions throughout the year to provide contractors with the knowledge they need to complete Hiring Client requirements and maximize the value of their ISNetworld account. Topics vary each month and sessions are available in multiple languages to accommodate customers globally. Webcasts are an included benefit for ISNetworld subscribers and serve as an opportunity for contractors to ask questions directly to the ISN Team. Upcoming Webcasts Available for Registration An Overview of the ISN RAVS Written Program Review Process – U.S. Tuesday, June 13 at 10:00am Central Daylight Time Thursday, June 22 at 2:00pm Central Daylight Time An Overview of the ISN RAVS Written Program Review Process – Canada Thursday, June 15 at 2:00pm Central Daylight Time Tuesday, June 20 at 10:00am Central Daylight Time Please note, not all webcasts listed above are currently available for registration. Click Here to log in and register for an upcoming webcast. Please contact the ISN Customer Service Team for additional information.      

The National Safety Council (NSC) has named June as National Safety Month. Each year, National Safety Month helps bring awareness to some of the most common causes of injury and death in three main areas of our lives: at home, at work and on the road. Each week of National Safety Month will focus on a different health and safety topic in hopes of raising awareness to hazards and lessening their impact. Week 1: Standing Up to Falls Week 2: Recharging to be in Charge (Fatigue Awareness) Week 3: Preparation for Active Shooters Week 4: Don’t Just Sit (Ergonomic Awareness) Week 5: Road Safety There are many ways you can help raise awareness for these common safety hazards: safety moments, toolbox talks, leading by example and making donations to safety related causes. Another way to help raise awareness is for you to take the National Safety Council’s Pledge to be Safe at Work. The pledge can be found at http://www.nsc.org/act/events/Pages/Safe-at-Work-Pledge.aspx. Please help ISN, the National Safety Council and many other organizations across the United States raise health and safety awareness by celebrating National Safety Month this June.