Custom work permit and isolation app
A work permit is the point where an installation is handed over to the person who will be working on it. At most companies this happens on paper, in triplicate, with signatures that are illegible and a copy that goes missing. The question that matters after an incident is simple: who released this, and on what basis?
Why paper is the risk here
The chain is long and every link can slip. There is a request, a task risk assessment, an assessment, isolation of the installation, a measurement if needed, issue, the work itself and handback. On paper, every handover is a signature on a form lying on a table in the waiting room. Whoever is elsewhere at that moment signs later, or doesn't sign at all.
The shift change is the sharpest moment. The permit was issued by someone who has gone home at three o'clock. The new shift lead knows someone is working somewhere in the installation, but not exactly what has been isolated or what agreements have been made. That is not carelessness; it is a handover that exists only verbally.
On top of that, much of the work on installations is carried out by third parties. Contractors and fitters are unfamiliar with your procedures, they change personnel, and they are precisely the group working on the installation. Managing third-party work is not without reason a standard part of a safety management system.
How we build this
The permit is a flow with fixed handovers. What we build is that flow, not a digital version of the form.
Who may request, who assesses, who isolates, who issues. This differs from company to company and must be configurable, because a flow that doesn't match reality gets bypassed.
Which valves closed, which switches off, which locks applied. This is the step an incident most often traces back to, and on paper it is a handwritten list.
Open permits pass explicitly to the next shift, with what is still open and what has been agreed. Without this step the handover exists only verbally.
A tank pit or an installation component has no coverage. The app works offline and syncs later, keeping the original timestamp.
What the app does in practice
The permit flow carries the whole. What you add beyond that depends on how much work is done by third parties and how your crews rotate.
Permit with the risk assessment attached
The task risk assessment belongs to the permit, not to a separate folder. A permit without an assessment cannot move through the flow.
Isolation with a verifiable checklist
Which valves, switches and locks, ticked off by who and when. On handback the same list runs in reverse, so nothing is left in place.
Issue at the place of work
A code at the installation component opens the correct permit. Issuing in the waiting room and then walking out is the moment reality and paper drift apart.
Measurements linked to the permit
Gas and oxygen readings with value, time and person. Where a measurement is a condition, the permit cannot be issued without that value.
Handover at shift change
Open permits pass to the next shift, with who is still inside and what has been agreed. This is the weakest link in almost every process.
Works without signal
In a tank pit or behind steel, the connection drops out. Everything is recorded locally and synced later, with the original timestamp.
Who we build for
The shape of the flow differs considerably from company to company. Four situations.
Chemicals and process industry
Many concurrent permits and many third parties on site. Here, an overview of who is working where yields the most.
Contractors and maintenance parties
You work at sites with different procedures. A permit on your phone instead of a paper in the van saves a return trip. See also the field service app.
Handling and transfer of hazardous substances
Less installation work, more work on tanks and pipework during receipt. Timing the isolation is the tricky part here.
Safety officers and inspectors
During an audit or investigation, the question is always the same: show us the permits for that day. That is a lookup, or a search through binders.
Test your idea first: a working prototype in 1 day
With OneDayBuild, we turn your idea into something tangible in one day for €1,150, so you can see whether further development is worth the investment. Decide to go ahead with the full build? Then we credit the full cost.
Explore OneDayBuild →Technology and integrations
Procedures differ by site and change over time. Anything involving steps, roles, permit types and conditions should be configurable.
Why Appfront
We build the workflow, not the form
A digital copy of a paper permit solves nothing. The gain lies in the handovers that currently go wrong.
Shift change is the weakest link
We make the handover a mandatory step of its own. A verbal handover is not a handover when an incident occurs.
The installation has no signal
We design offline as the starting point. An app that only works in the waiting room shifts the problem rather than solving it.
Third parties do most of the work
We build for people who don't know your procedures and whom you may send someone different tomorrow. That calls for a different design than for your own staff.
Security and privacy
A permit system shows which installation parts are open and who is on site. That is information you want to keep tightly controlled, and contractors should only see their own part. We set access per site and per period, and let it lapse automatically for third parties.
In an incident, the permit is the first document requested, and then the reliability of the record matters. A signature that can be added later, or a measurement that can be altered afterwards, renders the file worthless. We record every step as unalterable, with time and person, even when synchronisation happens later, and any correction appears as a visible amendment alongside the original value. How we handle security ourselves is set out in our information security policy; external reports go through our CVD policy.
Frequently asked questions about the permit-to-work app
There is no regulation requiring paper. What matters is that the permit can be demonstrably traced: who assessed what, what was isolated, and who issued it. Digital makes that easier than paper, provided the record cannot be altered afterwards. Check your setup with your safety officer and the competent authority.
Open permits are explicitly transferred to the next shift, with what remains open, who is still on site, and which agreements have been made. We make this a step of its own, because it recurs as a weak point in almost every incident investigation.
Yes, and that is deliberately the starting point. Tank pits and installation parts rarely have coverage. Everything is recorded locally and synchronised later, preserving the original timestamp. Otherwise an issue receives the time of synchronisation, and the sequence no longer holds.
That is what it is for. They get access to their own permits and their own period, with the instructions that go with them. That access lapses automatically. It is better than a shared account at the gatehouse, which is the usual solution today.
The ATEX app answers whether tools may be taken into a zone and records the gas reading on entry. This app is about releasing work on the installation itself. In practice we integrate the two, so the reading from the zone check ends up in the permit.
The Seveso app covers the emergency plan and safety rounds. This app covers work on the installation. The layer above it, with the substance inventory and the management system, is handled by BRZO software.
Yes, and that is necessary. Permit types, conditions and who may approve what differ by site and change after an audit or an incident. We keep these as settings, so an adjustment does not become a construction project. A workflow that does not match practice gets bypassed, and that is worse than paper.
That depends on the number of permit types, whether third parties are involved and whether integrations are needed with your maintenance planning. The permit with isolation and issue is usually quick to put to use and removes the biggest risk; the rest can grow from there. We give a reasoned estimate after the discovery phase.
Knowing who is currently inside?
Ask for the currently open work permits and for who is in the installation on the basis of them. How long that takes is the answer. We build this as a standalone app and as part of a broader custom app development project.