FAQ

VSM is a web-based tool for managing your safety and health programs. With VSM, you can create site specific programs and policies, employee safety handbooks, conduct employee training, document compliance efforts and track all safety and health related activities. It schedules compliance activities, sends reminders and then documents everything completed.

It can be used for a single location or multiple locations. When used in multiple locations, all programs become uniform and consistent across the entire organization.

VSM was developed by safety and health professionals who have had years of experience dealing with complex regulatory issues. The programs, policies, and other VSM tools are used by a wide variety of organizations as a foundation supporting compliance. However, only OSHA can guarantee you are in compliance with all its regulations.

You can:

• Manage your safety program
• Create site specific safety policies and procedures
• Create site specific employee safety handbooks
• Train employees individually or in groups
• Track training performance
• Document all aspects of the safety and health program
• Manage MSDS information

You can edit all programs, policies, employee safety handbook, and compliance assistance forms to make them site specific. You can also add company addresses and logos to documents you wish to print.

There are compliance assistance forms, industrial hygiene forms, and training forms and training records, among others. Generally, there is a sample form for any document that reflects your efforts to maintain OSHA compliance.

If formal training is required by an OSHA standard, it is included in VSM. The programs can be used for online learning or presented by a moderator in a group setting. Following each training session, there is an exercise (quiz) to assess knowledge retention. Employee performance is documented and retained for training verification and future reference.

Additional training programs to support good manufacturing practices and in general, enhance the safety and health program are also available. A short quiz follows each of these learning sessions as well.

No. VSM is designed to be used by both safety professionals, whose full time job is managing a safety and health program, and by those who have additional responsibilities beyond safety and health.

It is a particularly good tool for those who manage a safety program in addition to other responsibilities. Compliance schedules, training programs, and individual employee training curricula are identified when the initial input of company or employee information. Monthly queries guide you to ensure that your programs stay current and on target. In addition, VSM's support staff routinely monitors OSHA activities to keep you abreast of any regulatory changes. Every time you log on to VSM, you are accessing compliance expertise.

Through VSM, you have access to over 1,500,000 MSDSs on a 24/7/365 basis.

The information in VSM is as secure as technology will allow. There are several levels of security preventing unauthorized access. Social Security Numbers are encrypted.

A complete system backup prevents loss of critical information due to power surges, power losses or natural disasters.

As company demographic information is entered, permissions are assigned. Only authorized personnel will have access to VSM. At the highest level of management, all company information can be available. As you move down to other management levels, information access becomes more restrictive until, at the frontline employee level, only employee specific information is available.

VSM's staff of safety and health professionals routinely monitor OSHA's website for new standards or updates of existing standards. VSM is designed so universal changes reflecting current OSHA information can be made to all existing programs. You will be notified via e-mail of any changes that require updates to your programs.

A variety of records and documents are kept by VSM:

• All programs and policies
• Employee safety handbook
• Compliance verification forms
• Employee training documents and records
• Chemical inventory records

Yes. VSM was specifically designed for managing multiple facilities. Security levels are set so that corporate headquarters has access to all company information but individual locations only access information pertaining to that specific location.

Information about VSM will be communicated to you through e-mails.

Your complete program, including all programs, documentations, and training records will be available to you at all times 24/7/365. You will be able to access them and print out what you want.

After the initial set up, you will receive a report summarizing the information you entered, enabling you to verify your program's status and confirm that it meets your preferences.

On a monthly basis you receive a series of queries dealing with program modifications, employee additions/terminations, and compliance in general. You are not required to respond. These queries are intended to assist you in determining if compliance issues are completed.

On a monthly basis, you will receive information on what employee(s) should be trained and in what subject(s). If training is completed during the month, VSM will track it and record performances. You will receive a report of all training completed during that month. You will be reminded to update the OSHA 300 Log of Work-related Injuries and Illnesses.

On an annual basis you will receive queries designed to help you review and update your programs and policies (as required by all OSHA standards), maintenance and storage of documents and records. You will also be reminded to complete the OSHA 300 A, Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses, if applicable to your facility and post it by February 1.

Depends on the number of employees, number of locations and the extent to which employee data already exists in an electronic format. It may take from four to twelve hours to input data, create safety policy and procedure manuals, employee safety handbook and establish employee training curricula.

Depends on the number of employees, number of locations, and how much the overall program changes from month to month. Month to month, operations probably change very little but employees do come and go so to maintain a current program, that information must be entered into VSM

VSM is an excellent support tool for safety and health professionals. It provides the core requirements of safety and health programs, documents all safety and health related activities, calendars compliance events, monitors training requirements/needs, and tracks employee performance.

You can build on what already exists. Some adjustments will be needed in order to establish a data base for utilizing the management tools, establishing employee training curricula and tracking employee training performance. Much of what you have can be retained and improved by the tools in VSM.

OSHA requires that employers in all industries create and maintain a safe and healthy work environment. The differences in programs simply reflect the hazards unique to a given industry (i.e. manufacturing facilities have a different set of hazards than healthcare facilities). Through a series of questions and use of Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes, VSM identifies the hazards for a given facility and then builds a safety program reflecting those hazards. A safety and health program for a manufacturing facility will have common elements with a healthcare facility and some elements will be included in one and not the other.

VSM is linked to all major websites providing support to employer safety and health programs. Through these links, you can access just about all the information you need to stay current on OSHA regulatory issues and matters.

A staff of qualified safety professionals is also available to assist with elements (i.e. forklift training, industrial hygiene work) of a safety and health program that can't be managed or completed via the internet. The staff provides telephone or e-mail consultations and, if needed, on-site consulting services or work. A wide range of safety products (PPE, support equipment, etc.) is also available through VSM internet links.