Find the best EHS Software

What is EHS software?

EHS software, or environment, health, and safety (EHS) software, is a digital solution designed to manage and monitor an organization's employee safety and environmental responsibilities. It provides businesses the tools to assess occupational risks to employees and the general public, such as hazard exposure, spills, and explosions. The software also tracks emissions, waste, and resource consumption metrics to analyze a company’s environmental performance and enhance sustainability initiatives.

EHS software solutions assist businesses in tracking and responding to workplace incidents, such as occupational hazards and deviations from permitted conditions, helping manage workplace and product safety and maintain regulatory compliance. These systems are typically used by companies that operate within highly regulated sectors, such as oil, mining, gas, and manufacturing.

What are the core features of EHS software?

• Occupational health management: Maintain and improve employees' health, safety, and well-being. This feature includes modules for tracking employee health records, managing medical examinations, and ensuring regulatory compliance with employee health standards.

• Risk management: Identify, assess, and mitigate potential hazards or risks at the workplace. This feature involves tools for conducting risk assessments, managing safety audits, and tracking corrective and preventive actions. It enables documentation of hazards, evaluation of risk levels, and prioritization of risk control measures.

• Reporting/analytics: Collect, analyze, and visualize safety and compliance data. This feature offers insights into incident or accident rates, EHS compliance status, and other areas of concern. These insights help measure the effectiveness of EHS initiatives and make necessary adjustments.

What are the benefits of EHS software?

• Enhances workspace safety: EHS software enables systematic identification, assessment, and mitigation of workplace risks. By centralizing hazard data and facilitating regular risk assessments, it lets you proactively address potential dangers before they result in incidents. This proactive approach minimizes workplace accidents, injuries, and related costs.

• Improves compliance management: EHS management software helps you stay up to date with regulatory requirements and industry standards, such as Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations. It automates compliance tracking and documentation, reducing noncompliance risk and helping avoid potential fines and legal issues. The software also ensures all safety protocols, training, and inspections are conducted and recorded, providing an audit trail for regulatory bodies.

• Better environmental performance: The software monitors your company’s environmental impact by tracking emissions, waste, and resource consumption metrics. This capability supports informed decision-making regarding resource-usage reduction strategies and sustainability initiatives and helps meet environmental regulations and corporate social responsibility goals.

What are the potential issues with EHS software?

• Inaccurate data reporting: Inaccurate EHS reports can lead to noncompliance, resulting in legal penalties, fines, and increased scrutiny from regulatory bodies. Regulatory frameworks such as OSHA and EPA standards demand precise and timely reporting, and failure to meet these requirements can have serious repercussions. Inaccurate data can also lead to incorrect risk assessments, causing your business to overlook significant hazards or misallocate resources to less-critical areas.

• Data security and privacy concerns: Handling sensitive health and safety data requires robust data security measures to protect against breaches and unauthorized access. Ensuring compliance with data protection regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), adds another layer of complexity.

• Limited customization options: Different industries have unique EHS requirements, processes, and workflows. For instance, the chemical industry needs specific modules for handling hazardous materials, while the construction industry requires detailed safety protocol tracking. A lack of customization prevents the software from fully meeting your business’s specific needs, leading to gaps in compliance and functionality.

How much does EHS software cost?

Most EHS software solutions on the market are priced on a “per month” basis, and their entry-level pricing plans range from $2 to $300+.* An enterprise product that’s priced higher may include additional features such as contractor management, asset management, chemical management, advanced reporting, integration with learning management systems, and priority support.

*The pricing included is for the entry-level/lowest-priced offerings found on vendor websites as of June 19, 2024.

What is EHS software used for?

EHS software facilitates workplace safety management, regulatory compliance, and environmental stewardship. However, depending on the data you feed into the system and the available software features, it can have multiple use cases.

• Incident management: The software provides tools for recording, investigating, and analyzing workplace incidents, accidents, and near misses. It helps understand their root causes, such as procedural failures, equipment malfunctions, or human error, and implement corrective actions to prevent future occurrences.

• Audits and inspections: The software streamlines the scheduling, execution, and documentation of safety audits and inspections. It helps identify noncompliance issues and track corrective actions, ensuring continuous improvement in safety practices.

• Training and competency management: EHS software can manage training programs, track employee certifications, and ensure all personnel are adequately trained on safety protocols and regulatory requirements. This capability helps maintain a competent workforce that adheres to safety standards.

Which tools integrate with EHS software?

EHS solutions integrate with various tools to optimize business operations. We looked at thousands of user reviews for EHS software to identify products that users frequently mention integrating with their EHS tools:

• Microsoft Power BI is a data analytics platform that integrates with EHS software to help visualize EHS data, create comprehensive reports, and provide actionable insights through interactive dashboards, aiding in data-driven decision-making.

• Procore is construction management software that integrates with EHS tools to streamline safety management processes on construction sites. It combines project management with safety protocols, ensuring compliance and improving on-site safety tracking.

• Google Drive is cloud storage software that integrates with EHS tools to help store, share, and manage EHS documents and records securely in the cloud. This integration ensures easy access and collaboration among team members from any location.

• Teamwork.com is project management software that integrates with EHS systems to help coordinate EHS projects, track tasks and deadlines, and enhance collaboration among team members. This integration ensures safety and compliance projects are managed efficiently.

• Salesforce is customer relationship management (CRM) software that integrates with EHS tools to align EHS initiatives with business operations. This integration helps track customer interactions and feedback on environmental and safety concerns, improving overall business and safety performance.

We identified these integrations mentioned most often in verified reviews of EHS software published on Software Advice within the past two years (as of June 19, 2024).

Considerations when purchasing EHS software

• Identify the nonnegotiable features for your business. The EHS software features you need will differ based on your industry and business operations. For instance, if you’re a construction company, you must comply with OSHA standards, which necessitate compliance tracking. But if you run a chemical manufacturing firm, you’ll need advanced reporting capabilities to meet EPA regulations for hazardous materials. Nonnegotiable features ensure the software effectively supports your organization’s unique EHS management requirements, enhances operational efficiency, and maximizes software utility across departments and functions.

• Determine the effectiveness of risk assessment tools. EHS tools should facilitate systematic identification of workplace hazards, quantitative or qualitative assessment of risks based on severity and likelihood, and prioritization of control measures to reduce risks. Effective risk assessment tools enable your business to preemptively address potential safety issues before they escalate into incidents or accidents. Choose software with robust risk assessment capabilities to maintain a safe working environment, protect employees from harm, and safeguard business continuity.

• Assess incident management and reporting features. The EHS software solution you choose should facilitate easy incident reporting, including capturing incident details, documenting witness statements, and logging corrective actions taken. It should support real-time notification and escalation processes to address incidents promptly. Accurate incident data collection and analysis ensure regulatory compliance and drive continuous improvement in safety processes and operational efficiency. Prioritize software with robust incident management features to manage incidents effectively, minimize their impact, and foster a culture of safety and accountability.

Source

Products evaluated for the pricing calculation were taken from Software Advice’s EHS software directory. The pricing ranges exclude freemium versions of the products. The features highlighted were identified based on their relevance and the percentage of products in Software Advice’s directory that offer them.

Disclaimer: This EHS management software buyers guide was authored by Software Advice’s content team. We develop our guides using the author’s expertise, insights from 2M+ unique user reviews, and our proprietary data science algorithms to identify trends in user sentiment, preferences, and priorities. Some text was generated with assistance from AI tools.