Customer Spotlight – Owen Electric

Software and Customer Support Simplify Safety

Owen Electric is an electric utility cooperative in Owenton, Kentucky who aims to lead the utility industry by being an innovative and trusted source of energy solutions. Always focused on providing superior service, they chose to partner with Sospes as they embarked on a journey to enhance operational efficiency and streamline safety procedures.

“We needed to get away from all of the paperwork that was getting shuffled underneath the seats of trucks and vehicles of our outdoor employees. We needed a digital framework so that we could reduce clutter, have everything in one place, and make it easy to hand things off to the right personnel,” explained Rodney Kincaid, Manager of Safety for Owen Electric.

The Ease of Automating EHS

The goal was to establish a digital framework that could consolidate all necessary forms into a centralized platform. They chose Sospes because the software was simple to learn and easy to use on mobile devices. The decision to implement Sospes proved transformative for Owen Electric. The company transitioned from traditional paper-based processes to a comprehensive digital solution. Forms, inspections, job briefings, safety observations, and crew visits were all seamlessly integrated into the Sospes platform. The shift to a paperless environment not only provided employees with easy access to essential forms and improved processes, but also provided management with data reports to support decisions.

Dedicated Sospes support specialists made implementation stress-free. They streamlined workflows by applying templates and best-practice knowledge from hundreds of safety implementations, guaranteeing a low-cost implementation with a short learning curve. The Sospes team and the digital solution simplified Owen Electric’s workflows, eliminated information gaps, and delivered high value data early.

Positive Impact on Operations

With Sospes in place, Owen Electric has experienced a positive impact on their operations. Their employees are automatically guided through job briefings and truck reports, ensuring no steps are missed. The ease of access to forms and the ability to conduct safety observations through Sospes contributed to a more streamlined and efficient workflow.

“Now that we’re three years down the road, we don’t know how we’d get along without Sospes anymore. Our employees have all of those forms at their fingertips in one place. So, we’re pretty much paperless—even our safety observations and our crew visits—those things are all inside of Sospes,” explained Rodney.

“Sospes makes everything a lot easier, especially the job briefings and truck reports. The guys love the fact that it walks them through everything they need to be reminded of. That way they don’t skip over something they should be paying attention to. That’s a big benefit.

“And with just the push of a button, reports are ready. You can quickly take that to an executive team and they can make heads and tails out of everything that you’ve done and see it in a very neat and orderly fashion. That’s a huge benefit in the management world for sure.”

World-class Support

One of the standout features of Owen Electric’s experience with Sospes is the exceptional customer service received post-implementation. Unlike many other providers, Sospes consistently demonstrated a commitment to addressing queries comprehensively. The accessibility of the Sospes team through web meetings and phone calls has been a key factor in Owen Electric’s satisfaction and ongoing subscription to the platform.

“You don’t get good customer service in many places anymore. Sospes has been the anomaly. They have always been there to answer questions and have been an incredible support resource,” Rodney explained.

Owen Electric’s digital transformation with Sospes stands as a testament to the platform’s adaptability and the team’s effectiveness. As Rodney summarized, “Any industry can benefit from Sospes because you’ve got everything in one place—all kinds of different forms, security benefits, all of the analytics behind the scenes. Plus, we’re extremely happy with the ongoing customer service!”