by Wynand Serfontein, Senior Scientist @ Sasol Technology (Pty) Limited
In a safety management system, there is a constant battle to find the optimum balance between procedures and common sense. On the one hand, both our educational systems and legal systems support a culture of procedures. The educational system encourages written material to be studied and examinations to be written on the content of the material. The examination usually contains a mix of proving knowledge of facts and being able to interpret the facts. The exact nature of this mix depends on the type of material and the application envisaged.