SBN System Overview

Who This Guide Is For

This overview is for anyone new to SBN—whether you're a safety manager evaluating the platform, a field inspector getting started, or an administrator planning your organization's rollout. It explains what SBN is, what problems it solves, and where to go for detailed guidance on each module.

What SBN Does

SBN (Simple But Needed) is a cloud-based Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) management platform that connects safety, compliance, and operational teams across your organization. The platform provides digital tools accessible from any device to document, monitor, and analyze safety operations in real time—from issuing work permits and tracking equipment inspections to managing corrective actions and generating compliance reports.

The problem SBN solves: Traditional safety management relies on disconnected tools—paper permits, spreadsheet trackers, email chains, and filing cabinets. This creates information silos, duplicate data entry, delayed visibility into operations, and compliance gaps. SBN replaces this fragmented approach with a single connected system where data flows automatically between teams and activities.

What You Can Manage with SBN

SBN supports a comprehensive range of safety and compliance activities across your organization:

Workplace Safety

Confined Space entry and monitoring
Daily Safety Walkthroughs
Hot Work permits and control
LOTO (Lockout-Tagout) Procedure Generation
Safety Observations (GEMBA)

Compliance & Auditing

Compliance tracking (ISO/NFPA/OSHA)
Incident Tracking and investigation
Near Miss reporting and analysis
OSHA 300 recordkeeping

Inspections & Maintenance

Site/Equipment Inspections
Fire Inspections and Fire Extinguisher Inspections
Fire Alarm Inspections and Fire Sprinkler Inspections
Preventative Maintenance scheduling
Corrective Action Tracking

Asset Management

Asset Tracking for facilities and equipment
Chemical Asset Inventory
Facility Asset Tracking

Permitting & Planning

E-Permitting for Safe Work
Job Hazard Analysis (JHA)
Confined Space Safety planning

Training & Assessment

Toolbox Talks and Safety Meetings
Ergonomics: Office/Industrial evaluations
Ergonomic Self Evaluation

Documentation

Safety Data Sheets management
Regulatory Compliance (OSHA) documentation

The Value You Get

Capture Data Anywhere

Capture data from your desk or on the move from a mobile device
Catch it all: geo coordinates, bar codes, photos, signatures—save data your way
Work online or offline in the toughest of conditions and upload when you are ready
Onboard rapidly with an intuitive design and extensive training library

Conquer Documentation

Customize forms to fit your needs and capture the data you want
Choose from pre-existing templates like OSHA 300 to cover the basics or build your own forms from scratch
Gain insight and spot trends with powerful, customizable dashboards
Adjust employee data access with our permissions portal

Supercharge Compliance

Download CSV reports to dive deep into the data
Generate and send PDF reports straight to your inbox with the push of a button
Build custom dashboards within SBN or use our APIs to easily integrate with PowerBI, Tableau, etc.
Trigger actions in the field by scheduling events or assigning ownership from the office

System-Wide Benefits

Single source of truth—all safety data in one place, accessible in real time
Mobile + offline capability—document work at the job site, even without connectivity
Automatic connections—data entered once flows throughout the system
Complete accountability—audit trails track every change to every record
Location-based control—teams see only data relevant to their facilities
Actionable intelligence—turn operational data into dashboards and reports

Industries Served

SBN serves organizations across multiple industries with specialized safety and compliance needs:

Construction
Environmental Health & Safety
Government & Public Sector
Laboratories
Oil & Gas
Chemical
Insurance
Healthcare / Hospitals
Food & Beverage
Manufacturing
Pharmaceutical / Biotech / Labs
Utilities
Warehousing

The Five Core Modules

SBN is organized into five specialized modules that work together but can be used independently based on your needs.

Process

The Process module is your central hub for work authorization and procedure documentation. Create and manage work permits (hot work, confined space, excavation), Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) energy isolation sequences, Job Hazard Analyses (JHA) for pre-work hazard assessments, and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) that document safe work practices. This is where teams authorize work activities, document safety controls, and maintain compliance with operational safety requirements.

Inspect

The Inspect module manages facility oversight and quality assurance activities. Conduct scheduled and ad-hoc inspections of facilities, equipment, and safety systems, then track any corrective actions that result from inspection findings. The module provides customizable forms and checklists that can be tailored to your specific inspection requirements, whether you're conducting daily safety walkthroughs, monthly equipment inspections, or annual compliance audits. Corrective actions created in Inspect can be assigned to individuals or teams, tracked through resolution, and linked back to the originating inspection for complete accountability.

Asset

The Asset module provides comprehensive tracking of physical equipment and materials. Catalog what equipment you have and where it's located, track asset specifications and maintenance histories, and store associated documentation like manuals or certifications. Asset also enables preventative maintenance scheduling to ensure critical equipment receives timely service before failures occur. The module includes inventory management capabilities for tracking and managing materials.

Core Admin

The Core Admin module is your system control panel for configuring the foundational elements that make everything else work. Administrators build the location hierarchy that determines how data is organized across your facilities, create and manage user accounts, assign role-based permissions that control what each user can see and do, and organize users into teams for collaborative work. The location structure you build in Core Admin flows through every other module—when someone creates a permit in Process or an inspection in Inspect, they're selecting from the locations you've configured here. Proper setup in Core Admin is essential before rolling out any other module.

Insight

The Insight module transforms operational data into actionable intelligence through dashboards, analytics, and reporting capabilities. Rather than manually compiling information from multiple sources, Insight automatically pulls data from all other modules to create visual summaries, trend analyses, and performance metrics. You can build custom dashboards that focus on the KPIs most relevant to your role—a safety manager might track open permits and overdue inspections, while an executive views high-level compliance statistics and incident trends. The module supports filtered views by location, date range, or record type, and provides export capabilities for deeper analysis in external tools. Map-based visualizations show geographic distribution of activities, helping you identify high-risk areas or uneven workload distribution across facilities.

How You Access SBN

SBN meets you wherever you work with multiple access options.

Web Browser

Access the full SBN interface from any modern web browser. The web interface provides complete administrative controls, advanced filtering and search, detailed reporting and analytics, template creation and editing, and bulk operations and data exports. Use the web interface when you need comprehensive functionality or are working on complex configurations.

Mobile Applications

SBN provides three specialized mobile apps for field work:

SBN Inspect+ - Conduct inspections, complete checklists, and document observations on-site

SBN Asset+ - Track assets, manage inventory, and handle task management in the field

SBN LOTO+ - Create permits and lockout/tagout procedures at job sites

All three apps provide offline capability for areas without connectivity, photo capture and attachment, QR code scanning for quick access, and synchronization when connection is restored. Download the appropriate app from the iOS App Store or Google Play Store and sign in with your SBN credentials.

Cross-Device Continuity

SBN maintains your work across devices. You can start a permit on your mobile device at the equipment, save it as a draft, open the same permit on your computer, complete additional sections and submit, and view the final permit on any device. All changes sync to the cloud immediately when online, or queue for sync when connectivity returns.

Key System Capabilities

Location-Based Data Control

SBN organizes data around a hierarchical location structure representing your facilities. Users are assigned to specific locations and see only data from those areas. This ensures teams access relevant information without being overwhelmed by data from other sites or departments.

Role-Based Permissions

SBN uses role-based permissions to control what users can access and modify. Administrators can grant different levels of access—from full system control to read-only viewing—depending on each user's responsibilities. Users can be assigned different permission levels across different modules.

Customizable Forms and Workflows

SBN forms adapt to your organization's needs with customizable templates, reusable data lists, and intelligent forms that show only relevant fields based on your inputs. Administrators configure forms to match your specific requirements, ensuring consistent data capture while keeping the user experience streamlined.

Generate scannable QR codes linked to specific records. Post these codes at job sites or share them digitally to provide quick access to relevant information without requiring users to search through the system.

Offline Capability

The mobile apps function without internet connectivity, allowing users to create and edit records in areas without coverage. Data syncs automatically when connection is restored.

Complete Audit Trails

SBN tracks every change to every record, documenting what changed, when it changed, and who made the change. Audit trails cannot be modified or deleted, ensuring compliance with record-keeping requirements.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I access SBN from my personal device?

Check with your organization's IT policy. SBN works on personal devices, but your organization may restrict this for security reasons.

What happens if I lose internet while working in the mobile app?

Your work saves locally and syncs when connection returns. In web browsers, you may lose unsaved changes—save frequently.

What browsers does SBN support?

Modern versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. Internet Explorer is not supported.

Is the mobile app available for both iOS and Android?

Yes. SBN provides three mobile apps (SBN Inspect+, SBN Asset+, and SBN LOTO+), all available on both iOS App Store and Google Play Store.

How do I reset my password?

Contact your SBN administrator. They can trigger a password reset for your account.

Why can't I see records my coworker created?

You may not have access to the location where the record was created, or you may not have the appropriate role permissions. Check with your administrator.

Where to Go Next

This overview provides the foundation for understanding SBN. For detailed instructions on using specific modules, refer to the dedicated module documentation.

For administrators setting up the system:

Core Admin User Documentation - Configure locations, users, permissions, and teams before rolling out other modules

For users working with specific modules:

Process Module User Documentation - Create and manage work permits, LOTO procedures, JHAs, and SOPs
Inspect Module User Documentation - Conduct inspections, manage corrective actions, and track completion
Asset Module User Documentation - Track equipment, manage inventory, and schedule preventative maintenance
Insight Module User Documentation - Build dashboards, generate reports, and analyze operational data

For getting started with SBN:

Getting Started Guide - System requirements, login procedures, interface navigation, and basic troubleshooting

Need help? Contact your organization's SBN administrator for user account issues, permission questions, or training coordination.