You’re probably across the recent engineered stone ban, but did you know SafeWork Australia has just come out with new rules to further protect workers from crystalline silica found in other building materials? These new rules begin on 1st September this year and apply to all states except Victoria whose rules are already in place.
Crystalline Silica Substances (CSS) include stuff like sand, stone, concrete, and mortar that contain at least 1% crystalline silica. When you cut, crush, drill, polish, saw or grind these materials, they release tiny dust particles called respirable crystalline silica (RCS). These particles are so small they can get deep into your lungs, which can lead to serious health issues, like silicosis—a lung disease.
If silica dust is generated, assess if the work is high-risk. Document this using the handy Form in the HazardCo Hub, and if you determine the work is not high risk, you must explain why. If you’re unsure, assume it is high-risk. When assessing if processing CSS is high risk, consider these factors:
Eliminate or minimise the risks from processing the CSS as much as possible and use at least one of the following measures during the processing:
If workers are still at risk of being exposed to silica dust after you’ve put one or more of the above controls in place they need to be provided with respiratory protective equipment (RPE) and wear the respiratory protective equipment while the work is carried out.
Avoid high-risk tasks when possible. If unavoidable, create a silica risk control plan outlining tasks, risks, and controls. This plan must be developed with workers, shared with them before starting work, and regularly reviewed for effectiveness.
What needs to be in a silica risk control plan?
Keep it simple and easy to understand—no need for lengthy explanations.
We suggest using the SWMS tool in the HazardCo App if the processing creates a contaminated atmosphere or involves high-risk construction work. Just ensure all the Silica Control Plan requirements are covered.
Ensure that any worker involved in or at risk of RCS exposure due to high-risk CSS processing receives crystalline silica training. This training must be nationally accredited or approved by the WHS regulator and should cover health risks and the correct use of control measures.
Conduct air monitoring if you’re unsure whether silica levels exceed the Workplace Exposure Standard (WES) or need to assess if there are health risks from RCS processes. Hire a certified expert like an occupational hygienist, to perform the monitoring and ensure it meets standards. If levels exceed limits, report it to the Regulator within 14 days. Keep records for 30 years and make them available to affected workers.
Provide health monitoring for workers at significant risk from ongoing silica exposure, including those near high-risk processing. Keep records for 30 years and give a copy to the worker.
Regularly review safety measures, especially after workplace changes.
If you need guidance, reach out to our advisory team at 1800 954 702 for assistance.
Each year more and more builders are using construction software to manage their business, both on site and in the office. Building companies with good systems and processes in place (particularly digital ones) can create strong, resilient businesses that are prepared for anything. If you’re scrambling around with paperwork and manual time-wasting tasks like it’s the year 2000 check out this guide on the latest in construction software. Go digital and build a resilient business that gets ahead in 2024.
Here are some of the most popular tools that will help you shift into the next gear:
Connected Supplier Network
BuiltGrid is the construction industry’s connected supplier network. The platform helps builders to engage with existing trades, services and material suppliers or find new ones.
With access to over 9800+ trades, services and suppliers BuiltGrid will make sure you can win your next project and complete it on time and under budget, profitably.
As the market continues to evolve it can become more difficult for builders to win the projects they want. Toby Loft, co-founder at BuiltGrid says, “Having great supplier relationships is important, but having access and visibility over the market rate is vital to winning the projects you want. BuiltGrid users are achieving cost reductions of over 9% in time, work and materials, these gains are helping them win the projects they want while significantly boosting profits.”
Construction management and estimating software
Buildxact is job estimating and job management software designed specifically for residential builders, renovators and trades. It’s the market-leading option for Aussie builders who want to run their construction project from takeoff to the final invoice, all-in-one place.
Buildxact continues to evolve and bring out new tools. It now integrates directly with your favourite suppliers to get the latest prices, which makes the quoting process quicker and more accurate. And a new mobile tool connects you with your on-site crew, to make sure you never miss a beat from the job site again.
Take advantage of estimating software uniquely designed for residential builders and trades. Check out the HazardCo and Buildxact New Year combo offer, running until the end of Feb 2024
Learn more about Buildxact.
Pre-account software
Dext Prepare is a game-changer for the construction industry, streamlining your financial paperwork management. The app automatically extracts, categorizes and stores all the information you need from your financial paperwork so you can easily submit to accounting software – anywhere and anytime.
Dext Prepare’s leading-edge accuracy and rapid processing remove the need for time-consuming manual data entry. This helps you save valuable hours each week and lowers the risk of errors in your books. This is critical in the construction industry, where financial clarity can impact project timelines and budget management.
Seamlessly integrating with all main accounting platforms – including Xero and QuickBooks Online, Dext Prepare ensures your financial records are always accurate. Your data is stored securely for ten years, providing a reliable archive for easy reference whenever necessary.
With Dext Prepare handling your expenses data, you can focus more on the operational aspects of your construction business, secure in the knowledge that your financial records are in order.
Learn more about Dext.
A simple health and safety system
HazardCo is a health and safety system that makes WHS simple, giving you the confidence you’re keeping your crew and business safe while cutting the time you spend on paperwork.
Paul Shelton from HazardCo says, “You can’t completely avoid the admin that comes with running safe sites but we can make it a heap easier by removing all the time-consuming parts. Lots of small builders will choose to digitize their H&S system before anything else, as it’s an easy win that’s quick to implement and has instant results. If you haven’t seen a demo of HazardCo recently it would be worth looking at it again as lots of new contractor management tools were added to the system last year.”
As the main contractor, you’re responsible for the WHS of everyone on site, not just your direct employees. HazardCo has new and improved tools to get your contractors involved in H&S. As well as saving time, automating your contractor management processes helps to deal with labour fluctuations and provides flexibility.
Find out more about HazardCo.
Property Information
Looking for an efficient way to search for potential sites and check feasibility? Conducting due diligence and reconnaissance from your laptop is really easy with Landchecker’s on-map functionality.
Quickly and easily searches properties to identify key insights, such as; heritage overlays, flood zones, bushfire-prone areas property boundaries, site dimensions, zoning maps, planning permit applications, topography, precinct structure plans, last sold price and more.
Access property titles and plans at competitive prices with one click purchase.
All paid plans now come with High-Resolution Aerial Imagery so you can analyse geospatial data for a “full-picture” view that reveals how potential development site locations/suburbs are
changing over time.
Client budget validator
ProCalc is a quick budget validator that draws data from thousands of residential builders’ projects over Australia.
Builders use ProCalc to accurately ballpark construction concepts in just 15 minutes from their desktop to eliminate tyre kickers & time wasters from their sales pipeline. Reduce wasted time on detailed quotes for clients who couldn’t afford the project by giving them a quick ballpark immediately before proceeding further to detailed estimates.
Builders also use it to stop under-quoting projects. If clients can’t afford their original design, easily ‘tweak’ ballpark estimates in minutes to reduce the scope so you can still win the job but protect your margins. When you’re ready, you can apply localised market construction rates to ballpark estimates to inform your final detailed estimate. Plus, builders can choose the architects/designers they’d rather work with as the preferred builder (rather than the price checker).
ProCalc was created by a builder after interviews with hundreds of registered building practitioners. ProCalc is the missing link in qualifying which prospects can afford your services – those worth investing your time in. Most builders using ProCalc say they save 2-4 days per month in estimating so they can focus on real prospects who become real, paying clients.
Accounting software
Xero is online accounting software for your building company which makes it super easy to automate your admin. Plus, you can work from anywhere, even your ute!
When it comes to construction accounting, if you don’t do it regularly it’s easy to fall behind and things can quickly get out of control. By building accounting into your regular workflows you’re always on top of it. Xero is cloud-based and simple to use. Whether you are on-site or in the office you can access Xero on your smartphone or tablet so you’ll never get behind.
Xero connects to your bank, bookkeeper, accountant and other financial apps you might use such as Dext.
Find out more about Xero.
The moment we’ve all been waiting for has arrived—the Win a Holiday competition has been drawn!
Throughout October and November Mitre 10 customers had the chance to win a $2500 voucher by simply signing up as HazardCo members.
Our heartiest congratulations go to the lucky winner: Smart Built!
A big thank you to everyone who participated.
We’re excited to announce we have partnered with Reece to help more plumbers and tradies to get on top of health and safety.
Reece is Australia’s largest plumbing and bathroom supply business. As part of their dedication to their customers’ success, they offer Trade Business Services that cover everything from job management to financial services. And now, they are adding health and safety to their offerings. Reece are passionate about simplifying health and safety and helping their customers make the switch to digital systems that will take their business to the next level.
With this partnership now in place, HazardCo members can easily charge their membership to their Reece account, making it hassle-free to join.
Our focus is on simplifying health and safety and keeping the person at the top of the ladder safe. As well as offering a digital system that makes it easy to complete WHS reports, such as SWMS, using your phone, we also offer HazardCo members a dedicated 1800 number to receive health and safety advice or incident support, ensuring you can feel confident you’re on top of health and safety.
Learn more about HazardCo and Reece working together.
As part of our ongoing partnership with Buildxact, we’ve recently built a connection between our two systems to help residential building companies and renovators further simplify their business processes.
Buildxact is a Software-as-a-Service company specialising in residential construction management systems. Buildxact is headquartered in Melbourne Australia and is used extensively throughout Australia and New Zealand.
We share a common goal of wanting to simplify home construction by offering easy-to-use digital tools. We are excited to bring together two leading systems and help our members work more efficiently. Our shared vision is to empower builders by helping them to transition to digital systems and reduce their paperwork burden.
There has been strong market demand to build a connection between HazardCo and Buildxact. The first version of this connection automatically uploads important health and safety documents created using the HazardCo system directly to Buildxact. By storing project documents, such as estimates, quote letters, invoices, alongside safety documents like SWMS or safety induction notes in one easily accessible location, builders can save time. We are continuing to work with our members to get their feedback on these tools and discover what other functionality would be valuable.
The integration between HazardCo and Buildxact comes at no additional cost to builders who are already using both systems.
An estimate being created using BuildXact:
At HazardCo, the safety and well-being of every person on the job site is our top priority. By connecting our leading health and safety system with Buildxact’s residential construction management system, we are providing builders with an integrated solution that enables them to complete their projects efficiently while ensuring a safe working environment.
Learn more about Buildxact and the integration here
We know that many builders need to get on top of their health and safety. In fact, the 2023 State of Residential Construction Industry report stated that 45% of building companies in Australia don’t have an established health and safety system in place at all.
We’ve partnered with Mitre 10, one of the leading trade hardware stores in Australia, to make it easier than ever for builders, renovators and trades to protect their crew and their business with the HazardCo system.
With this Mitre 10 partnership, you can now charge HazardCo to your Mitre 10 trade account, so it’s super easy to get on board.
We pride ourselves on making health and safety easy to understand and simple to action on-site.
Have a chat to your local Mitre 10 trade rep or store, or get in touch with us below.
Email info@hazardco.com | Call 1800 954 702
A White Card is proof that you have completed an approved construction induction training course. The training provides basic knowledge of construction work, health and safety laws, common site hazards and how to control the associated risks.
White Cards are also known as Construction Induction Training Cards or General Construction Induction Cards. In some states, a previously issued blue card or red card may still be accepted.
Everyone carrying out construction work needs to have a valid White Card. This includes people who may not be on the tools, such as Principal Contractors, Site Managers and Site Supervisors. Essentially anyone who enters a construction site that is unaccompanied or not directly supervised by an inducted person needs to have a White Card.
Employers must make sure that anyone intending to carry out construction work has completed the required training before they start work. An Employer is required to keep a record of their worker’s training and competencies including White Cards.
White Card holders need to make sure they can show their White Card for inspection while on-site.
Residential construction sites have people coming and coming all day. The HazardCo system automates the process of checking White Cards and makes it really simple.
When a worker scans into your site they will be guided through a site induction and prompted to submit a photo of their White Card by taking a photo of it. The photo of the White Card will be shared with you and saved for your records.
A White Card doesn’t expire as long as the worker keeps up their competencies. If they haven’t worked in the construction industry in the past two years, the White Card is not considered to be valid and they will need to complete the training again.
White Card training is intended to educate and provide awareness of key hazards and risks within the construction industry. It’s fair to say someone without this training may expose themselves or others to an unsafe work environment.
On top of that, as the White card is a mandatory requirement under Health and Safety legislation, a hefty fine can be imposed, something that no one wants!
You will need to complete an approved course. Here is more information by state:
This strategic partnership brings together two leading systems, as construction companies across Australia and New Zealand are increasingly adopting on-site technology to ease their administrative burden and work more efficiently.
We make health and safety simple, giving more than 10,000 companies the confidence they are keeping their team and their business safe, while reducing the time they spend on paperwork. Our system provides guided digital tools as well as incident support and health and safety advice when it is needed. We’re most well known for our simple and effective site induction and scan-in solution.
“We’re pleased to be able to integrate Procore with our unique site induction and scan-in solution, making it faster and easier than ever for Procore customers to know who is on-site, and when,” said Nick Halley, Head of Product at HazardCo. “Members receive a hazard board with a unique QR code for their site fence, and everyone uses the free app to scan into site, induct themselves and accept the safety plan, with H&S docs seamlessly flowing back into Procore.”
“Our goal is to make health and safety simple. This exciting partnership between HazardCo and Procore connects construction management and health and safety together, giving building companies an out-of-the box digital WHS system that seamlessly connects with their existing workflows,” said Iain Dixon, Chief Executive at HazardCo.
He concludes, “we regularly speak to builders that are passionate about building scalable and efficient processes for their business, but health and safety continues to be a very manual and paper-heavy activity for them. There are large gains to be made by digitizing health and safety, with HazardCo members telling us they have halved the time they spend on WHS admin using our simple system. This partnership will make it easier for building companies to streamline their processes and give them the confidence they are on top of their health and safety requirements.”
Phew, what a year 2022 was. With continued labour shortages and skyrocketing supply increases it certainly wasn’t an easy year for residential builders in Australia.
The reality is that no one knows what 2023 has in store, so the best bet is to take stock of the things in your control. With a deep understanding of your business and some rock-solid processes, you can build a strong, resilient building company that is prepared for anything!
Check out this list of construction apps and technology that can help you stop scrambling around with paperwork and manual time-wasting tasks. Go digital and build a resilient business that gets ahead in 2023.
BuiltGrid is Australia’s supplier-connected project management system. The platform empowers builders to manage existing trades and find new trades & suppliers who want work. BuiltGrid will ensure your construction business completes your next project on time and under budget.
With no supply chain connectivity material and trade pressures are likely to continue into 2023, Toby Loft, co-founder at BuiltGrid says, “We’re dedicated to improving project visibility to reduce costly waste and rework; with real-time connection to your supplier’s builders save tens of thousands for every house built. Builders using BuiltGrid achieve a cost reduction of 8.75% in time, work and materials, giving them a significant boost in profits. With BuiltGrid, you can manage existing or find new trades & suppliers, compare quotes and automate your admin.”
Find out more about BuiltGrid.
Buildxact is easy to use construction management and estimating software designed for small builders and contractors. It will help you to run your construction projects, from take off to invoice.
“With all of the current challenges in the market, building companies can really benefit from putting a system in place that helps them to deal with last minute schedule changes and price increases on the fly. Buildxact is really flexible. It will help you to stay on top of each job, giving you a clear picture of income and outgoings so you’ll know exactly where your job profit stands. Buildxact also now integrates directly with your supplier to get the latest prices to you to make your quoting quicker and more accurate”, says Julian Krishnan Nair from Buildxact.
“Our customers often tell us that using Buildxact cuts the time spend on take offs by 80%. You can upload the PDF and do your takeoff on-screen in minutes, you don’t need paper plans or scale rulers. Measure in a few clicks and price jobs in one step.”
Find out more about Buildxact.
HazardCo is a digital health and safety management system for home builders. It makes health and safety simple, giving you the confidence you’re keeping your crew and business safe, while cutting the time you spend on paperwork.
“When small builders want to move away from paperwork and digitize their processes, the first place they often start is health and safety. It’s an easy win that’s quick to implement and delivers instant results. You can create a site specific safety plan in minutes and have everyone scanning into your site in no time. As well as saving time, automating your contractor management processes helps to deal with labour shortages and provides flexibility,” says Luke Williams, from HazardCo.
HazardCo is trusted by 10,000 businesses across Australia and New Zealand
Getter has created an on-demand procurement platform for all tools and materials, bridging the gap between wholesaler and construction site. Getter has an extensive supply chain that can tip the scales to your competitive advantage as project margins fall and programs tighten.
Sam Hatty from Getter explains, “Getter is the answer to one of the greatest productivity killers all builders and tradies face in their day-to-day – supply procurement. We were founded by a group of tradies so we’re well aware of the constraints that sourcing and procurement can put on a project, both economically and time-wise. What makes us different is our unique technology backed by an enthusiastic team and an extensive supply chain. We have a heavy focus on customer service and precision delivery by our own inhouse fleet.”
The platform consists of 2 sourcing options; ‘Shop and Deliver’ and the recently launched ‘Getter Quotes’.The Shop and Deliver service offers an online catalogue boasting over 100,000 products categorised into trade-specific genres with an intuitive product availability filter according to location. Getter Quotes simplifies a traditional material sourcing process from clunky emails, phone calls & over the phone prices to an easy to use, transparent, itemised quotation process. Giving customers access to a much wider range at incredibly competitive pricing.
Landchecker brings over 300 sources of information into one place so you see the full story of any property.
Craig Heaven from Landchecker says, “When a potential client calls you up about a site and they’re wanting to know the possibilities, you can quickly put the address into Landchecker and view up to date property information about the site in one place. Landchecker is fast, accurate and easy to use so you will look like a pro to the potential client and ensure the build aligns to your company”
Information includes land size, planning zones, overlays, and previous planning permits for the property and surrounding area. Turn on high-resolution aerial imagery to get a good look at the site and to see what it looks like now and historically to see what’s developed around the property. Landchecker is currently available in Vic, NSW, Qld,WA, Tas and SA with more than 3000 builders regularly using the platform.
Find out more about Landchecker.
Xero is online accounting software for your business that connects you to your bank, accountant, bookkeeper, and other business apps. It’s made for small businesses, so you can automate admin and work from anywhere, any time.
The thing about construction accounting is that you have to do it regularly. If you fall behind in your accounts, things can quickly get out of hand. So it’s vital to build accounting into your workflow. Xero is cloud based and simple to use. Whether you are on site or in the office you can access Xero on your smartphone or tablet so you’ll never get behind.
PSI Global specialises in property information for builders and trades.
“We know builders are busy managing their business, so we make it our mission to do the grunt work”, comments Samantha Whitmore, PSI Global.
“Our process is simple – we have great relationships with local government authorities, we gather all the information for you and we even do all the chasing up! We proactively keep you updated on how your job is tracking through our online portal and you can opt to receive your property information as we get it or at the very end in a neat package. We then provide you with one easy-to-manage invoice when your job is complete, no monthly subscriptions and no hidden fees.”
You can order Certificate Of Title, DP Plan (Title Plan), Instruments 88B, Sewer Drainage Diagram, Planning Certificate 10.7(2), Planning Certificate Section 10.7(5) and more.
Find out more about PSI Global.
With the introduction of the new work health and safety regulations in WA that came into effect on 31 March 2022, we are pleased to be able to support home builders to understand these new WHS laws and put in place a simple and effective system that will help them to feel confident they are protecting both their team and their business.
Executive Director of Master Builders WA, John Gelavis says we are really excited about this partnership, as it will help provide Master Builders members with the opportunity to access reliable safety tools and advice, which will build a better and safer industry for all.
“The WA building and construction industry relies on safety advice, and with the recently changed Work Health and Safety Laws, this partnership with HazardCo will be an extremely useful tool and service for our members”, says Mr Gelavis.
Alongside discounted access to the HazardCo system and advisory services, Master Builders WA members are also entitled to a free WHS check-up to take stock of what should be done on-site and off-site to provide a safer site and work environment. We will help you evaluate your current systems in light of the new WHS laws in WA and will provide guidance on what’s being done well and areas of improvement.
Chief Executive and Director of HazardCo, Iain Dixon says HazardCo is proud to partner with Master Builders WA.
“Master Builders WA is one of the most recognised and respected brands in the industry. This partnership reflects our desire to collaborate with companies who share the common goal of helping builders to keep their teams and their businesses safe. We look forward to meeting more builders throughout WA and introducing them to a better, simpler way to manage their health and safety”, says Mr Dixon.
To find out more about the partnership and get your H&S sorted click here.
