Using food integrity to secure the global food supply chain

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Today’s food supply chain stretches across the globe. While consumers used to eat the food they grew in their communities and adjusted their diets based on the availability of seasonal products, today’s consumers can have food from all over the world any day of the year. Although this has increased food choice and availability for consumers, it has also created a complex global supply chain with multiple points of vulnerability to both accidental and intentional events that impact food safety and quality. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 48 million Americans get sick from foodborne illness each year, with approximately 128,000 hospitalized and 3,000 deaths. The steady annual increase of this number is at least partially attributable to the complexities of the global food supply chain. 

To meet the challenges the food supply chain presents, the food and beverage industry must move towards the concept of food integrity. Food integrity is an approach that combines food safety and quality principles, … Read more...

The Voice of the Customer Part 3: Digging Below the Surface with Implied Needs

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In the previous blog on the Voice of the Customer (VoC), we looked at stated needs, which are the most obvious way in which the customer conveys their needs regarding products and services. In this blog, we’ll look at implied needs, which are the needs the customer does not articulate because they consider them too obvious to mention. For example, customers won’t articulate that they need a washing machine to clean clothes, but they assume that it will. When implied needs become subtle, it can be easy to miss significant opportunities to meet customer requirements. 

While the VoC tools for collecting stated needs have their origins in traditional marketing and sales techniques, those for collecting implied needs have their origins in the fields of psychology, philosophy, ethnography, and data science. This section provides a brief introduction to some of the most common methods for implied needs. Organizations should use a complementary set … Read more...

Next Generation Quality: It’s All About the Data

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As early as 2015, McKinsey’s “Digital America” report projected that adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies in manufacturing alone was expected to increase domestic GDP by over $2 Trillion by 2025. This estimate, developed from expectations surrounding productivity enhancements, waste reduction using methods from lean manufacturing, and new business models enabled by technologies like 3D printing and practices such as remanufacturing, is on track to not only be met — but exceeded.

Manufacturing is Being Revitalized

All of these sea changes are happening because of data – and the software used to collect, manipulate, and understand it. While traditional manufacturing jobs have relied on physical and mechanical skills, new manufacturing jobs require additional cognitive skills. As a result, manufacturers are scrambling to identify and roll out technology training for workers that will best support these emerging needs. At the same time, organizations recognize that institutional memory remains critical. Job shadowing … Read more...

Verdantix ranks Intelex as a leader in EHS

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Independent research and consulting firm Verdantix has released the 2019 installment of its Green Quadrant: EHS Software 2019 report, the only third-party benchmark of EHS software available. What makes this report notable is that it provides an unbiased, detailed evaluation of 23 market-leading global EHS software providers, measuring not only product capabilities, but also the varying strengths of each vendor, as well as providing expert guidance for EHS leaders.  

UNDERSTANDING THE 2019 VERDANTIX EHS SOFTWARE GREEN QUADRANT 

The report is the culmination of a lengthy research process conducted by research directors and analysts at Verdantix. The benchmark assesses vendors and their applications on a broad range of criteria spanning mobile solutions, automated data input and hardware integrations, business intelligence and configurability, to name a few. In addition, the report assesses the full range of EHSQ processes, including safety, incident, audits and inspection management, quality management and management of change (MOC), sustainability management and more. It also dives into analysis of momentum criteria relating to vendor success, such as continuous innovation, new customer growth, installed customer base and partnerships. But … Read more...

Health & Safety is a Team Effort: Industry 4.0 and IIoT

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The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and Industry 4.0 are forcing companies to rethink their approach to health and safety. Digital transformation uses innovative IoT endpoints and their data to improve the company’s core business, but they make health and safety more complex than ever. When properly deployed and integrated, sensors, endpoints and devices improve the individual safety of workers and identify additional areas for process improvement. 

More connected workers, more devices, more data — this massive influx of information and capability requires an end-to-end solution that addresses new and evolving EHS challenges. A solution that can capture the data produced from edge devices, analyze it and organize it in meaningful ways to improve health and safety programs and processes. Intelex Technologies and Honeywell are working together to create an integrated EHS solution that solves the challenges posed by Industry 4.0 and IIoT.  

The Number of Connected “Things”  

The global IIoT market will grow to $310 billion USD by 2023, and some of that growth will be from the increase in the number of “Connected Workers.” This means that the average industrial worker is going to be wearing and carrying multiple devices to help them do their job. Deployment, management and training … Read more...

An Insider’s Guide to Buying Safety Management Software: Part II

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Navigating the world of buying Safety Management Software (SMS) can be quite a daunting task. To help you understand the ins and outs as well as the potential benefits for your organization, we got the facts from an industry expert.

In the first part of this guide we explained how SMS can help your organization ensure employee safety, comply with regulatory and legislative standards, and finally demystified the software industry so you felt comfortable asking the necessary questions so you can make the right decision.

Now in Part II we’re going to walk you through the fee structures and benefits of using software-as-a-service (SaaS) technology, how to maximize your ROI by implementing an SMS solution, and finally how to develop an effective business proposal.

Using the information in this whitepaper, as an EHS professional you will be equipped with the tools and information you need to secure the best solution … Read more...

How to Drive Your Safety Engagement with Data

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When a workforce buys into safety, good things happen. When everyone from the CEO to the rookie shipper/receiver comes to work each day recognizing how important safety is to them and their colleagues, the number of fatalities, injuries and near misses invariably starts to plummet.

As any safety manager will tell you, however, increasing engagement is easier said than done. Competing priorities, such as rigid product ship dates, unforgiving supply chain schedules and other factors tied directly to the bottom line, can have a negative impact on safety practices. 

Fortunately, robust new technologies and modern workplace health and safety approaches like Human and Organizational Performance (HOP) are providing companies with a greater ability than ever before to increase engagement levels across the enterprise. By leveraging data that is now available in today’s information-driven “Industry 4.0” era, organizations are able to see deep into their operations to recognize meaningful operational patterns … Read more...

Nonconformance vs. CAPA: Three Key Questions

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Communicating the differences between nonconformances (NCRs) and corrective/preventive actions (CAPAs) to staff can be challenging. It’s extremely important, too, that everyone fully grasps the distinctions — because consistency in using your organization’s quality management system will directly contribute to the accuracy of your metrics. Furthermore, this will impact the quality of the insights that can be generated by studying them.

In ISO 9001:2015, there is a defined progression between nonconformity, correction, and corrective action:

  • A nonconformity occurs when a requirement is not fulfilled. The result of a nonconformity, according to Hoyle (2017), is a failure to meet product requirements, carry out a task as required, or meet customer or stakeholder requirements.
  • A correction is the step taken to remedy that single nonconformity. Removing the nonconformity does not prevent the issue from happening again. The result of a correct is to prevent the nonconformity from advancing further in the process.
  • A
… Read more...

Six Tips for Managing your Regulatory Content

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Over the last century, globalization has driven a 4000% increase in international trade and prompted a rapid rise in the number of multinational (MNC) and transnational (TNC) corporations operating around the world. But companies operating in multiple countries must comply with rapidly changing local environment, health and safety (EHS) regulations such as OSHA in the U.S., the “Framework Directive” in the EU and JICOSH in Japan. In 2018, Enhesa covered 4,222 EHS regulatory developments from over 40 countries and 275 jurisdictions globally, an increase of 20% from 2017.

The short- and long-term costs (shut-downs, fines, litigation and tarnished brand) of non-compliance can be staggering. A recent Enhesa benchmarking survey of corporate EHS Executives found that:

  • 74 percent had incurred an enforcement action in the last five years
  • Two-thirds of the respondents had been issued regulatory fines up to $100k due to recent non-compliance. An additional 10 percent experienced fines in
… Read more...

Earth Day 2019: Protecting the Planet One Best Practice at a Time

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An indicator species is one whose condition tells us about the state of the environment and the ecosystems in which it lives. Lichens, bees, frogs and butterflies are just a few examples. These indicator species can tell us whether not only their existence is in danger because of environmental damage, but perhaps ours as well.

The theme of Earth Day 2019 is protecting our planet’s species. As we take time to reflect today (and hopefully more so in the future) it’s important to understand the small yet incredibly vital elements of a healthy ecosystem. When one part of that ecosystem stops functioning correctly, when an external actor is introduced into this delicate balance of organisms, the effects can be far-reaching.

At Intelex one of our core tenets has been to do business in a way that minimizes potentially damaging impacts on the environment. While we may not have a direct … Read more...