National shipyard modernized safety — boosting reporting efficiency by 66% using HSI

How Vigor Marine Group replaced fragmented systems with one platform to drive accuracy, visibility, and breakthrough safety results.

Company: Vigor Marine Group
Solution: HSI Platform (11 EHS Modules + SDS System)
Industry: Maritime Maintenance, Shipbuilding, & Marine Fabrication
Size: 2,500+ Employees
Location: 10 operating locations across US

Vigor Marine Group is a national maritime maintenance and modernization provider operating large shipyards across California, Oregon, Washington, and Virginia. Vigor manages complex, hazardous work where consistent safety processes, reliable reporting, and data visibility are critical. Their work spans:

• Ship repair & modernization

• Diving, hull cleaning, & fabrication

• New vessel construction

• High-risk, highly technical work under U.S. Navy and Department of Defense contracts

Key Challenges:

Before implementing HSI, Vigor struggled with significant fragmentation in their safety and reporting systems:

> Disconnected Tools & Inconsistent Processes

• Each shipyard used different systems: Excel, Word, binders, local apps, and long email chains.

• No standardization led to data integrity issues, version confusion, and inconsistent reporting.

> Excessive Manual Work & Redundant Data Entry

• Major yards required inspectors to enter the same information into three separate systems for customer compliance.

• This consumed hours of administrative time and introduced error risk.

> Limited Visibility Across 10 Companies

• Leadership lacked a unified view of incidents, trends, and leading indicators.

• Comparing performance between shipyards was nearly impossible.

> Compliance Risk with Federal Clients

• With Navy and DoD oversight, inaccurate reporting created operational and contractual risks.

> Poor Chemical Management Control

• Some sites used an outdated SDS provider; others relied on physical binders with missing or outdated documents.

> Inefficient Return-to-Work & Corrective Action Processes

• Decisions were buried in email threads, slowing response time and increasing potential lost-time days.

Key Solutions Implemented with HSI:

Vigor selected HSI for its flexibility, maritime-specific configurability, and hands-on implementation. They used HSI to:

• Build a centralized incident management workflow

• Create shipyard-specific JHA modules

• Digitize workers’ compensation processes

• Consolidate investigations into a single, auditable system

• Implement QR-code chemical libraries for real-time SDS access

• Standardize reporting across all locations

• Incorporate AI-powered forms and workflows for efficiency

The result was a unified national platform tailored to complex maritime requirements.

Key Results:

Vigor achieved transformational improvements across reporting, safety performance, and operational efficiency:

> 66% Increase in Reporting Efficiency

Consolidating three reporting systems into one workflow eliminated rework and reduced inspector admin time by hours per inspection.

> Record-Breaking Safety Performance

• Vigor achieved the best injury performance in company history.

• The busiest shipyard—Portland, Oregon—reached 190 days without a recordable injury, a milestone previously considered unattainable.

> Real-Time Data Validation & Leading Indicators

Leadership gained reliable visibility into near misses, first-aids, and trends, enabling proactive action.

> Faster Return-to-Work Decisions

What once took 2–3 days now happens within hours, reducing lost-time days and improving employee recovery.

> Faster Corrective Action Closure

Automated notifications and ownership assignment improved accountability and sped up hazard resolution.

> Organization-Wide Adoption

Even tech-resistant inspectors adopted HSI quickly — completing digital checklists in minutes. Supervisors now self-serve data through dashboards without relying on the safety team.

“This is the first time supervisors can simply log in, see exactly where they stand, and take action. It changed how we communicate, how we validate performance, and how fast we respond.” — Robert Dearing, Corporate Safety Director.”