Safety management can reduce machinery incidents

This saying is often used in jest on the presumption that the possibility of someone being injured from the resulting activity is almost non-existent but there are few things that can have a greater impact on a business than a workplace injury, or worse, an onsite fatality.

The suddenness of a major incident can send a shockwave through an entire workforce – impacting ongoing morale and productivity not to mention the emotional toll on everyone involved, no matter their role or responsibility.

Regular plant risk assessment, as part of a good safety management strategy, is one of the keys to reducing the possibility of workplace incidents and injuries.

In fact, businesses that regularly conduct plant risk assessments, based on a robust risk assessment plan, are one step ahead of their competitors when it comes to injury prevention.

From our many years of experience there are two key aspects to managing plant safety risks in the work place, especially in relation to the plant and equipment that is in use.

Firstly, have a plan and work the plan.

A good safety management system should encompass elements of the three essential ingredients of effective plant safety management – safe plant, safe plant operator and safe environment (sites and tasks).

Not only will good safety management result in reduced incidents and injuries, it can lead to improved business process, better customer service and reduced workers compensation premiums. Not to mention minimising any legal implication associated with a WHS incident. A more detailed analysis of these benefits is available here.

Secondly, get your team involved in safety management and make it part of the “day-to-day” in your organisation.

Anyone who has been involved in managing safety will know that an involved workplace is a safer workplace. Getting employees and contractors involved in development and ownership of components of a safety management system has a wide range of benefits. Usually, the process is better, the outcomes are more logical and the recommendations are more readily accepted and adopted by the ‘end users’.

Done correctly, the plant risk assessment process can be a good way of engaging employees and others on the safety journey. In order to do this it’s important to have a well planned and structured risk assessment process, so that people involved in the process are able to get the job done in a reasonable amount of time and with as little confusion as possible.

Plant assessor can help you with this so if you’d like to know about how to efficiently and effectively improve safety management at your worksite, please contact us.

Disclaimer: This information is intended to provide general information on the subject matter. This is not intended as legal or expert advice for your specific situation. You should seek professional advice before acting or relying on the content of this information.