Challenge
The Kiewit safety team needed to know who was on site during the rehab of the Washington Metro’s Yellow Line tunnel. With 24-hour activity on the site and multiple construction entrances to the project, a paper sign-in process was not up to the task.
Solution
By deploying SmartBarrel devices at each entrance, the safety team was able to collect real-time and accurate information for who was on the job site at all hours of the day.
The Company
Kiewit is a global construction and engineering company known for its excellence in delivering high-quality infrastructure projects since 1884. With expertise in various sectors, Kiewit offers design, engineering, procurement, construction, and project management services worldwide.
Nathan Boomhower is a safety manager with Kiewit, and was responsible for site safety on the WMATA Yellow Line project.
Nathan Boomhower, Safety Manager
Kiewit
Challenge
When Kiewit was awarded the project for rehabilitation work on Washington Metro Area Transit Authority’s Yellow Line, the project team started looking for an attendance and safety tracking solution that would cover the unique requirements of the project.
The Yellow Line Rehabilitation project included work in a tunnel, which required additional safety considerations. The Kiewit safety team needed to know who was in the tunnel in real-time. The tunnel had two points of entry, which meant traditional paper sign-in logs would be cumbersome and difficult to reconcile. In case of an emergency, the team needed to know the exact headcount and identities of any workers in the tunnel.
Solution
After reviewing many options for headcount and manpower tracking, Boomhower and the Kiewit team discovered SmartBarrel.
SmartBarrel’s portable time clock provided a simple way for workers to check in and out at each entrance. For those familiar with mining and underground work, the SmartBarrel system acted as a sort of digital brass board, making it easy to see who was on site at any giving moment.
At the peak of the project, Boomhower estimated that Kiewit had 250 workers on site per day. After switching from a paper attendance sheet to SmartBarrel, he estimated that the team was saving $5000 per day in time spent waiting to check in or out.
For the safety team, SmartBarrel’s real-time project dashboard put the right information in front of the team at all times. Knowing who is on site in real-time meant the team was prepared in case of an emergency.
SmartBarrel is happy to support top-tier teams like Kiewit as they deliver critical infrastructure projects like the Metro Line Tunnel.
