A great resource to help develop a Safety Management System (SMS) is DOE’s Integrated Safety Management System. They offer dozens of documents explaining each element and how it is intended to function within the SMS. DOE has been using this SMS since 1996 with world-class results. I love the structure and have used aspects of their model for decades. The one drawback is that DOE can be a tad bureaucratic, and some materials can become burdensome on a lean private business. The seven guiding principles of this SMS should be core to any SMS, of course, the devil is in the details and how well senior leadership embraces this approach to OSH. Here are their seven (7) guiding principles:
