A top-five pharmaceutical company, experiencing rapid growth, initially relied on ISNetworld for basic contractor compliance. As their needs evolved, they required more detailed risk assessments and a streamlined, cost-effective process for managing all contractors on-site. Frustrated by ISN’s high costs, difficult enrollment, and limited insights, the company transitioned to Highwire to enhance efficiency, improve outcomes, and support contractor performance improvement.
The pharmaceutical manufacturer faced three major challenges:
Arduous Enrollment
The manufacturer struggled to enroll more than 60% of contractors in ISN due to its complex registration process. Many, especially smaller contractors, resisted because of irrelevant questions, preventing full risk mitigation.
High Costs to Contractors
ISN charged thousands for assessments, even for small contractors, creating enrollment friction. These costs were passed to the manufacturer, totaling millions yearly, while contractor complaints and waiver requests added internal strain.
Inconsistency in Assessments
The pharmaceutical company required GCs and CMs to enforce safety standards during subcontractor reviews, but ISN didn’t provide them access. Non-ISN GCs used their own assessment methods, often misaligned with the owner’s standards
“We’ve observed that our safest jobs are also those with the highest quality. These are the jobs that come in closest to the cost and on schedule. There is huge business value in Highwire for us.“
— Director of Capital Projects, Pharmaceutical Manufacturer
The Highwire Solution
Streamlined Assessment Process
The manufacturer switched to Highwire's tailored safety assessments, reducing enrollment friction. With fewer, more relevant questions and 100% contractor enrollment, they gained full risk visibility and acted early to prevent incidents.
Contractor-friendly fees
Highwire's fees were, on average, 70% lower, easing the financial strain on contractors and reducing the manufacturer’s costs. With less friction and admin burden, the EHS team could shift focus to more strategic initiatives.
GC and CM Access
The pharmaceutical company gave GCs and CMs free access to Highwire so they could review contractor profiles and safety data, enabling collaboration and ensuring full compliance with the owner’s safety standards.
“The industry has no idea how much better Highwire is than ISN.“
— Global Safety Director
Results
100% compliance
The assessment process is streamlined to accommodate contractors of any size. This ensures efficiency and ease for all parties involved, regardless of scale.
Meaningful collaboration
The manufacturer, contractors, and construction managers are working together to enforce contractor management standards and deliver safe projects.
Millions Saved
Highwire has helped the manufacturer save money by eliminating contractor enrollment costs passed on to the owner and reducing incident-related expenses.
- Lowered TRIR by
- 35%
- Incident-related savings of
- $2.3M
- Avoided contractor fees totaling
- $5.5M