Safety Management System

“Proximate Causes and Subcauses (Personal).— In connection with the unsafe acts of persons (which are the direct causes of the majority of accidents) the immediately preceding subcauses are of great value in determining the most practical remedy. For example, it is not always enough to know merely that a machine operator oiled his machine while…...

H. W. Heinrich, Assistant Superintendent Engineering and Inspection Division, The Travelers Insurance Company is best known as the “Father of Industrial Safety”.  Much of what he developed in the 1920s-1950s can still be applied today.  He was a true pioneer in our profession, but it seems there are some in the profession today that want…...

Heinrich’s take on unsafe acts and the “vital significance” of what drove that behavior. He clearly believed that unsafe acts were a reflection of MANAGEMENT and not solely the worker. “Proximate Causes and Subcauses (Personal).— In connection with the unsafe acts of persons (which are the direct causes of the majority of accidents) the immediately…...

“The safety engineer referred to in this discussion is the industrial safety engineer who is employed by management. He is representative of and a part of the managerial and supervisory staff that directs the work of employees, and he, therefore, shares the responsibility of management for accident prevention as already described. Being specially qualified in…...

“Management’s responsibility for controlling the unsafe acts of employees exists chiefly because these unsafe acts occur in the course of employment that management creates and then directs. Management selects the persons upon whom it depends on carrying out industrial work. It may, if it so elects, choose persons who are experienced, capable of, and willing…...

H. W. Heinrich, Assistant Superintendent Engineering and Inspection Division of The Travelers Insurance Company, is known as the “Father of Industrial Safety.”  But today, there is a movement in the safety profession to denounce his work.  To me, this is just disrespectful; hell, most of us owe our professional safety careers to Heinrich.  The work…...

Every business needs to risk rank its businesses down to each process within each facility.  This “risk profiling” keeps safety matters and risks in perspective when you’re trying to manage a global operation.  This risk profiling MUST use accurate and verified data.  Lagging indicators can play a role, but they do not fully indicate risks…....

Who said the following, and what year was it said? “The prevention of accidents is a science, but it is not so recognized nor is it treated scientifically today. In our endeavors to solve other problems we proceed logically enough to find out what is wrong and then to make it right; but when it…...

Taking from the “Five Themes for Excellence in Safety Management Systems (SMS)”, we can look at a facility’s incident investigation process through this lens of excellence and measure the maturity of the safety culture.  To recap the progression, here are the five levels: Ad-Hoc Managed Standardized Predictable Excellence Using an organization’s incident investigation process, we…...

The significant ways of thinking and doing, which underpin a positive health and safety (H&S) culture suited to the organization, are identified and applied.  Culture is a lever that can assist the board and senior managers in improving company and safety performance. Setting out a culture strategy for H&S as part of a health and…...

Leadership research is pervasive in the organizational literature, and studies in mental health services suggest that leadership is essential for both the organizational process and consumer satisfaction and outcomes. Glisson and Durick found that higher levels of positive leadership in human service organizations were associated with higher levels of organizational commitment. Higher levels of positive…...