AWARD-WINNING Seymour Civil Engineering, one of the North East’s leading civil engineering firms, has launched its own company training portal set to digitally revolutionise the way construction sites are run. The portal focuses on the training and staffing side of projects allowing any site manager or client to have a clear snapshot of staff-on-site and their training credentials, whilst automatically prompting the system administration team before employee training requires renewal. Martin Russell, Training Systems Administrator said, “We set out looking for a cloud based, transparent system, that would manage our training needs and be accessible from a multitude of devices across all our sites for all user levels, whether it be a site manager or a client. “Seymour is always thinking about ways in which technology can be used to make employees jobs easier and departments more productive. “We wanted an intelligent system that would automatically present the training team with the information they needed on a daily basis, improving the efficiency of the whole process.” The portal uses a QR code format which allows users to see exactly what certifications each employee has all in one place, at the click of a button, from any location. An important aspect of the portals development was its mobile friendly functionality, so all users working on site have access to the portal via their mobile device. Martin said: “Our clients will soon be able to request access to the platform, which will allow them to see what qualifications each employee on site has, along with their certificates which are all uploaded to the platform.   “The intelligent search function within the new portal will allow the site managers, as well as users from other departments across the business, to quickly find out this information for themselves. We can already see that through this system we are streamlining operations.” One of Seymour Civil Engineering’s greatest assets is that they have their own vetted, trained, and highly skilled workforce. The smart, automated system has worked to simplify the management of the training for the company’s 210 team members. Martin continued: “Seymour Civil Engineering carries out the majority of their staff training in house, and as a responsible employer we’re taking the initiative to upskill our workforce, constantly investing in training and retraining to ensure their competency. “The system is so advanced that it shows pending training, what training groups are currently booked in, and automates three-month warnings for upcoming training expiry dates. Seymour made the decision to build a bespoke platform from scratch, due to the lack of suitable alternatives on the market. Martin said, “When we originally went to market, we did find systems that we could buy off the peg, but they were not designed specifically for the civil engineering sector, nor did they have the intelligence we were looking for. As a development team, we came together and asked the question, could Seymour build what was needed from scratch? Could we create a platform that was bespoke to the company’s needs?” “It’s brilliant to see the system in everyday use, making the jobs of employees across the business easier. The development team have delivered something that is a real asset to the company. “The portal is in its infancy and we have already identified improved functions following feedback from users which has provided us with a host of exiting future developments planned for 2018 and beyond. Off the peg packages mean you get what you’re given and alterations and additions are not always possible, whereas with our bespoke built portal, there’s so much room for development and the sky’s the limit. “The system places us ahead in the industry, purely because we have created something that is tailored to our specific needs. “It’s development is likely to also be beneficial to the civil engineering sector, and the idea of white labelling the portal and distributing it to other company’s similar to ourselves has been discussed as an option for the future.” Karl Brennan, Pre-Construction Director said “Seymour recognises the importance of sustainability and the role our industry has to play. By investing in technology and significantly reducing the amount of environmental resource consumed each year by the business, we are able to make year on year contributions toward achieving sustainable development goals. “The training portal is a prime example of how Seymour utilises innovation to create opportunities whilst contributing to society. We are also extremely delighted to have been presented with the CECA award for training company of the year after judges were impressed with our achievement.” “It is great to gain recognition after all the hard work that goes into ensuring our employees have the skillset they require to carry out their duties to a very high standard.” Seymour was recently awarded Training Company of the Year 2017 at the recent CECA NE Awards in recognition to their commitment to training and upskilling as well as their innovative and exemplar solution to ensure all staff have the training they require to undertake their daily tasks and offer continual personal development.