From Our Customers: Top Struggles Faced by Site and EHS Managers

Visitor management plays a critical role in the safety and security of any site, warehouse, or facility. From ensuring you're compliant with local and federal requirements to training staff on the best practices for guest management, visitor control can often be a major headache—particularly for those managing multi-site operations.

Whether you welcome a handful of visitors a week or hundreds a day, maintaining efficient visitor and contractor control protocols is crucial for monitoring arrivals and departures and ensuring the safety of all individuals on-site.

We have compiled a comprehensive list of the common pain points our customers had previously encountered. Ranging from audit preparation to the visitor experience, Site and EHS Managers alike have voiced their concerns about frequent issues. Keep reading to explore the various categories of challenges and how to address them.

Top Pain Points

According to site and EHS managers, their top pain points are:

Site Security and Visitor Management

EHS and site managers often encounter difficulties in maintaining accurate records of on-site personnel, particularly when relying on traditional logbooks. These records can be easily compromised or altered, posing a significant security risk and hindering the ability to manage emergencies or contractor issues effectively.

Site safety is a paramount concern for plant managers, especially in facilities housing valuable equipment and materials. Ensuring visitors are escorted at all times, and contractors adhere to safety guidelines is crucial for maintaining a secure environment. However, manual ID checks and NDA signatures can be time-consuming and prone to errors, diverting resources that could be better utilized elsewhere.

Implementing a visitor management system can address these common problems and significantly improve facility safety and security by automating the screening and sign-in process, providing digital audit trails, and enabling real-time monitoring of visitor activity. This streamlined approach not only ensures the protection of intellectual property but also enhances the overall efficiency of managing on-site personnel.

A standardized procedure across multiple locations further bolsters site security and optimizes visitor management practices, allowing EHS and site managers to address potential risks and emergencies effectively.

Audit Preparation and Compliance

Compliance audits can be a daunting task, often involving the reconciliation of multiple reports and GMP documents. The absence of an efficient visitor management system can result in significant delays, potential non-compliances, and difficulty in meeting ISO compliance standards. Implementing a visitor management system is crucial for simplifying the monitoring of visits and managing documentation, ultimately reducing the time spent on compliance audits.

Gathering GMP documents and reconciling reports for annual audits, such as SQF, BRC, Food Safety, Defense Audits, and ISO compliance, can be incredibly time-consuming. This is particularly true for industries like aerospace and electronics manufacturing industries, where ITAR & EAR compliance requires additional documentation, ID checks, and distinct badges for foreign national visitors. Relying on pen-and-paper systems for regulatory compliance, including OSHA, EPA, and ISO regulations, can lead to mistakes and overlook critical requirements.

An effective visitor management system simplifies audit preparation and makes compliance easier. By leveraging electronic data collection and management, businesses can eliminate manual paperwork and replace it with digital signatures and acknowledgments. This reduces the risk of losing essential documents and ensures adherence to various regulatory standards, making the overall compliance process more efficient and secure.

Site Safety and Real-Time Visibility

Site safety management is a critical responsibility for EHS and site managers, who must proactively ensure compliance with safety regulations. Accurate record-keeping of on-site individuals and their associated safety training is essential in maintaining a secure environment.

A comprehensive visitor management system can significantly enhance on-site safety by enforcing screening checks for visitors. This includes requiring the completion of necessary safety training, signing non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), and providing proper identification. Such measures help ensure the safety and security of both contractors and employees.

Real-time visibility of on-site individuals and their adherence to safety screenings is vital for site managers, especially in complex facilities where contractors and visitors may participate in safety training programs. Traditional pen-and-paper methods may prove unreliable, making it difficult to monitor safety protocols effectively.

Standardization and Process Improvement

A primary pain point for EHS and site managers is the lack of standardization across different facilities, resulting from each location having unique visitor management practices. Inconsistencies and unstructured procedures can lead to inefficiencies in visitor management, posing challenges for managers seeking to establish a robust standard operating procedure (SOP), especially in environments dealing with hazardous materials or elevated working conditions.

Implementing a PIAM solution with visitor management can address these challenges by standardizing processes across all locations and collecting necessary information, such as non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), safety training records, and compliance protocols. By automating visitor data collection, acknowledgment, and electronic signing of agreements, a consistent procedure can be ensured across multiple locations.

This approach enables EHS and Site Managers to overcome the challenges associated with disparate visitor management practices, ultimately leading to a more streamlined, efficient, and secure visitor experience across the organization.

Visitor Experience and Communication

Manual processes for visitor management can be time-consuming and negatively impact guest experiences, potentially leaving not-so-favorable impressions. Plus, the additional costs associated with receptionist headcounts may not be feasible in today's economic climate.

Traditional pen-and-paper methods can seem antiquated to potential customers and visitors. In contrast, leveraging technology and automated communication through a visitor management system effectively engages potential customers and promotes a positive impression.

A visitor management system solves these challenges by improving visitor experiences through pre-visit communications and self-service check-in processes. Providing instructions to visitors before they arrive ensures they are well informed and prepared for their visit. Additionally, the platform reduces the need for extra reception staff, creating a faster and more efficient experience for both visitors and reception teams.

A visitor management system like iLobby’s VisitorOS helps to improve the overall visitor experience by automating data collection and ensuring compliance with safety protocols. It streamlines procedures across multiple locations, allowing EHS and Site Managers to standardize visitor management practices, promoting safety, and creating a secure environment for employees, contractors, and visitors alike. With a platform like this in the arsenal of EHS and Site Managers, these pain points are not only addressed but, by and large, alleviated.

Getting Started with a Visitor Management System

With its comprehensive suite of tools, iLobby helps EHS and Site Managers reduce errors and inconsistencies in visitor management practices while improving overall security. Find out more by scheduling a demo today.