Technology Magazine February 2018 | Page 257

CANADA
“ At the time it was invaluable . Gaining experience from different business units allowed me to understand what their challenges and pain points were . I was then able to bring that knowledge back to the technology group and drive real change in IT , providing tremendous value to the business .”
As a result of Aecon ’ s investment into the care of its employees , it enjoys a very low turnover of staff , and regularly analyses skills gaps to work out what the business needs more of .
One requirement that never changes is Aecon ’ s focus on safety . Everything Aecon does – with regard to IT or otherwise – concentrates on the safety and security of its employees as a core value . “ Our people and getting them home safely to their families is our number one priority . From a business perspective , we don ’ t win business if we have a poor safety record ,” says Templeton .
As a result , Aecon has implemented technology to support this value .
“ Generally , in the construction industry , it can be difficult to track safety certifications or competencies ,”
Templeton explains . “ Rather than asking employees to recomplete certifications as they move to different roles or employers , we use a tool called Success Factors that tracks the safety records of all employees , ensuring managers do not need to put certain employees through the safety regiment all over again .”
This ensures workers do not waste time unnecessary doubling up on training , instead earning their certification in a timely manner so foremen can be assured of an employee ’ s suitability . For Templeton , technology at Aecon is all about making construction environments a better , safer , and more efficient place to be .
“ It ’ s exciting to me , especially from a technology point of view . We ’ ve looked at driving business value internally . How do we improve the way we work ? How do we improve the way we are seen externally to our business clients ? How can we provide value to them using technology ?
“ There are areas in which we can track underground fibre using augmented reality , or use 360-degree
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