The immediate and proximate causes of industrial accidents such as “falls of persons” are known to lie in two general groups, namely, mechanical or physical and personal. Both causes are controllable by management, and in the case of both, management has an unexcelled opportunity to exercise remedial action. Management further has a strong incentive to prevent accidents, because accident occurrence has a direct and seriously detrimental effect on quality and volume of product, cost of production, and on profit and efficiency in general.
Industrial Accident Prevention – A Scientific Approach, H. W. Heinrich, Assistant Superintendent Engineering and Inspection Division, The Travelers Insurance Company, 1941
