GPC streamlines Clean Air Act Title V record keeping using Locus Platform

Challenge

Grain Processing Corporation (GPC), a leading U.S. manufacturer of corn-based products, needed a smarter, more efficient tool to capture, track, notify, and report daily Clean Air Act Title V compliance parameters for numerous emission sources and points at their various production facilities.

GPC was using SharePoint to enter over 20 daily logs at two facilities and had to address several questions per log and per shift, throughout a two-shift day. Their system had no reporting or notifications, and there was no consistency between the forms in the system. The EHS manager would spend weeks searching through information to obtain the data needed for GPC’s annual Title V certification report and other reporting needs.

Solution

In order to simplify and standardize data collection and reporting, GPC selected Locus’ configurable Platform software solution. Locus Platform was selected based on its ability to be quickly configured to match existing business processes across operating facilities and easily implement the changes in permit recordkeeping requirements over time.

A dedicated project team at Locus and GPC identified improvements that could be made in Locus Platform from GPC’s existing internal “home-built” system that was not designed to meet the needs of demanding, ever-changing environmental compliance reporting. The collaborative team developed a comprehensive set of requirements that helped fast-track the project to a timely deployment that met or exceeded the GPC user community’s expectations.

Within six months, the new system was in daily use, and adoption by the remaining facility locations followed soon after.

Results

GPC was able to create a uniform business process across its Midwest facilities by using Locus Platform’s configurable data entry screens and flexible reporting dashboards. The focused reporting capabilities of the software made it easy for GPC to generate consistent, easy-to-read reports, so their EHS manager could now more quickly and reliably report compliance data.

The Locus Platform allowed iterative, streamlined configuration of data entry forms with built-in validation to match GPC’s specific business needs and nomenclature. By tailoring the forms and reports to the business, the GPC user community (comprised of users with very different needs and job responsibilities) found it easy to adopt the software and were able to provide actionable feedback during the configuration process.

The flexibility and ease of configuration, including standardized rules and validations, allowed GPC to streamline a previously cumbersome and error-prone process and gain user acceptance in record time.

Locus and GPC presented the following at the NAEM 2017 EHS&S and Sustainability Software Conference:

 Demonstrating Reliable Compliance Data Management and Reporting for Title V Permit Using Locus Technologies’ Flexible Platform