QR codes help AZ respond to roadway emergencies
During emergency situations, it was difficult to collect important information about damage to road infrastructure such as guardrails after car accidents. It was also cumbersome to track inventory and refills for the saltwater solution needed to de-ice roads during winter storms. Paper forms or confusion about where to document requests and damage led to incomplete information, slower repairs and delayed response times for work that is critical to road safety.
The Arizona Department of Transportation has embraced the use of QR code labels to make it easy for staff to document and request important frequently needed information and services. ADOT staff utilized problem solving and experimentation, standard work, visual management and Gemba walks to improve emergency response processes and data collection.
Starting in January 2024, ADOT placed a QR code label in each ADOT emergency response vehicle. The code allows for responders to easily use their smartphone to link to an Emergency Damage Report, a Google form where important information is documented and can be submitted while on scene, when the information is fresh in the responder’s mind. The form also serves as a checklist to assist the user with inputting all necessary information. The backend data of this form also auto-feeds to several metrics, including identifying spots where accidents are more frequent and a guardrail “hit list” to name a few. The hit list helps demonstrate whether there might be other causes of concern for guardrails that get hit over and over again.
Another innovative use of QR codes that ADOT has adopted is using the codes to track the inventory of the state’s brine maker, which produces the saltwater solution that de-ices roads in the winter. Access to brine is essential to keeping roadways safe for drivers during winter conditions, and it is used by the Flagstaff-based district as well as others across the state. During the last two winter seasons, the state has produced about 500,000 gallons of brine, which previously had been tracked using email, text communication and even paper forms, which are especially not feasible to use when filling out requests outside in a storm.
In December 2023, the team created a QR code and posted it at the brine truck refill station. The code links to a Google form where employees answer a few questions about their brine requests and deliveries. From there, a supervisor inputs the data into a Google sheet where all the inventory information is kept in one place, reducing errors, improving collaboration between units and streamlining communication about a critical resource. This process was the culmination of a longer improvement effort to innovate and expand the brine program.
Additional ADOT units are looking at further ways to utilize QR codes to improve processes.
Team members now have more confidence that they are collecting and reporting all important information during what are typically hectic situations. After a few months of use, the data collected will provide valuable metrics for whole districts to review.
“I strongly believe that any process is at risk of failure without genuine buy-in. With that in mind, I am extremely proud of the team we have here in Kingman. While change may not always be easy, our team has been fully engaged throughout the entire process of developing this tool, from its inception to its continuous evolution as a valuable asset that we utilize in the field on a daily basis.”
—Daniel Carlson, ADOT Kingman Maintenance Supervisor
“Three years ago, we started working to improve the [brine] process with our Lean coach. … We wanted to reduce the time from when a supervisor needs brine to when the delivery, paperwork and transfers are done. This tracking form has brought that time down significantly. It takes all the communication and standardizes it into just a couple of simple questions.”
—Tod Skinner, ADOT Flagstaff Maintenance Supervisor