As you know by now, I am a doer, and as a safety professional, I grew up in organizations with some advanced SMS. Then the tides turned, and I was hired to come in and build an SMS and coach on building a culture of safety. Now, as a consultant, I spend a lot of time working with organizations to strengthen/build a process safety management (PSM) system or an Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) management system. But there is one (1) thing both types of SMSs have in common…
IDENTIFICATION of HAZARDS
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ANALYZE those HAZARDS with a recognized methodology
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ASSESS the RISKS those HAZARDS pose to people/assets/business
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MITIGATE those RISKS down to a tolerable level (remember there is no world where risks = 0)
But to be successful in these core functions of an SMS, management MUST be able to recognize the difference between a HAZARD and RISK:
Hazard: The potential of a machine, equipment, process, material, or physical factor to cause harm to people, the environment, assets, or production/maintenance.
Risk: The possibility of injury, loss, or environmental incident created by a hazard. The level of risk is a function of the probability of an unwanted incident and the severity of its consequences.
Risk arises from hazards. As such, COMPREHENSIVE HAZARD IDENTIFICATION is key to effective risk management. The risk arising from a hazard that has not been identified cannot be managed.
In considering hazards and risk, it is important to recognize that harm or damage can occur in four broad areas:
- people,
- work environment,
- assets (e.g., equipment and property), and
- production/maintenance (e.g., process loss or business interruption)
These categories inform an integrated approach to risk management that encompasses potential losses. Integrated risk management also encompasses a variety of
engineering activities, including analysis of potential hazards throughout the life cycle of a product or process.
There are two aspects to risk
- probability (sometimes referred to as likelihood or frequency of occurrence) and
- severity of consequences
Probability-related risk reduction measures seek to reduce the likelihood of an undesired incident, whereas consequence-related measures try to address the severity of consequences and mitigate the extent of a potential undesired incident. Engineers must analyze hazards relevant to their work for the risk that these hazards pose for causing injuries or death, environmental damage, destruction of property, and business interruption.
