Health and safety inspections and audits play an important role in assessing the effect of an organization's health and safety protocols. Conducting audits and inspections is also important for identifying what needs to change, and helps companies analyze their overall safety performance.
This article will look at some of the key questions when it comes to health and safety inspections (also health and safety audits) and will review some of the issues faced by business leaders and health and safety professionals alike when it comes to initiating, managing and getting the best results out of health and safety workplace inspections.
Health and safety inspection programs are not only a proactive leading indicator, but they also form part of building a good health and safety culture. They are a critical part of any health and safety management system.
These programs can take different forms. They can fall into the category of being systemic (i.e. a holistic approach to common safety problems where a whole system of operations needs to be reviewed) or extrinsic (i.e. looking at a single none conformance that may have to be addressed individually).
A safety inspection is typically conducted by a trained professional who assesses the work environment for hazards, such as improper storage of hazardous materials, unsafe working conditions, or any other potential risks.
The inspector will then provide recommendations on how you can improve your safety processes. They may also issue citations or fines if serious violations are found. This can be beneficial because it will alert you to any potential problems before they become a bigger issue.
An audit is similar to an inspection in that it assesses the work environment for hazards, but it goes further by looking at how well established procedures are being followed.
An auditor will review documents such as employee training records, incident reports, policy manuals, etc. in order to ensure that all required documentation has been completed correctly and that processes are being adhered to properly.
A health and safety audit is a comprehensive review of all aspects of an organization’s EHS program— from policy documents to actual implementation on the ground. Audits verify whether an organization has implemented its EHS policies effectively, as well as determining if those policies are adequate for meeting current legal requirements.
Auditors will consider factors such as communication processes between management and employees, risk assessment procedures, training programs, emergency response plans, incident reporting mechanisms, record-keeping systems, etc. when conducting their review.
If any discrepancies or areas of improvement are identified during the audit process, the auditor will provide recommendations on how those issues can be addressed going forward.
A workplace inspection can be a planned or an unplanned walk-through of a workplace or selected areas within the business. In-house safety audits are needed to critically examine all factors (equipment, processes, materials, buildings, procedures) that have the potential to cause ill health or injury.
The information gained from these inspections are often used to identify actions necessary to mitigate any potential hazards. A schedule of planned inspections within any operational business is an essential element of a health and safety program and one which is commonplace in many organizations today.
Requirements for health and safety inspections will differ from business to business. This will vary based on types and complexity of operations, competency level of workers or employees, levels of risk, number of personnel involved as well as the general attitude towards health and safety within the organization.
Businesses simply cannot afford accidents, the purpose of such inspections are to reduce or even eliminate any risks to employees, customers or the general public. These risks could be as a result of poor hygiene, at risk work practices, behaviors, or simply as a result of inadequate policies and procedures to safely govern such operations within the business.
Consistency of application is key. The most successful businesses regard health and safety as a priority. It is, as a result, that leaders of such businesses set key performance indicators in order to ensure these programs are consistently conducted and become embedded within operational requirements.
Inspections and audits can help your business in numerous ways – from identifying potential risks before they become a problem to verifying that processes are being followed properly – but perhaps one of the most important benefits is that they serve as a reminder for employees of why health and safety standards matter.
Regular inspections and audits can help create an atmosphere where everyone takes safety seriously, which ultimately leads to fewer accidents or incidents occurring in the workplace.
Health and safety inspections can take place for a number of reasons. These can be performed by:
Most health and safety inspections will generally fall into one of the three above categories. The extent of the inspection and the skill set of the audit team will differ based on the type of inspections mentioned.
Both the external audits as well as audits conducted by government authorities, normally take a more systemic approach by looking at the overall management system in place to manage health and safety requirements within the business. Inspection teams in such cases are also likely to be more specialized both in terms of technical health and safety competencies as well as their expertise in the particular sector of operation they are assessing.
To ensure that all items are covered during the inspection, it is useful for an inspection team to develop a checklist which contains a reference, in brief points, to all potential hazards. It is likely this list will differ depending on the workplace.
For example, it is unlikely that a checklist for a chemical process plant would contain the same hazards as a checklist used to assess the risks within an office environment. It is therefore crucial that any inspection program or document used within the business is flexible enough to allow for changes or additional comments.
These checklists should never be considered as permanent lists. They should be reviewed and added to or revised as necessary when new machinery or processes are introduced, changed, or when an accident has been experienced and previously unsuspected hazards have been revealed.
The first step in preparing for a health and safety inspection is understanding the regulations that apply to your particular industry or workplace. It’s important to familiarize yourself with the relevant laws so that you can ensure all aspects of your business comply with them. Make sure to consult any appropriate government agencies if you need additional information or clarification on certain regulations.
Once you understand what needs to be done in order to meet the requirements of a health and safety inspection, it’s time to start gathering all necessary documentation.
This includes any records related to employee training, hazard assessments, incident reports, etc. Any documents associated with health and safety should be gathered and organized before the date of the inspection arrives.
International, regional or countrywide health and safety standards need to be considered when preparing for any type of health and safety audit. Such standards could look at various areas of risk within a business such as managing working at heights, confined spaces, electrical work, working guidelines around hazardous chemicals, risks from machinery as well as various physical, psychological and ergonomic health risks. Where particular machinery or equipment is used, it may be necessary to review some of the manufacturer’s literature around safe working practices.
Levels of employee involvement within the inspections must also be considered. In March 2018, the International Standard for Health and Safety Management Systems (ISO 45001) was released. One of the main areas of focus within the new standard has been employee participation in health and safety decisions. As a result, many organizations have now began integrating employees and contractors from different sections of their operations into the various health and safety committees and inspection programs.
Whether the inspection takes place by an internal or an external team, the methodology normally follows the same logic of planning a site inspection, developing a checklist with the list of areas to be visited, choosing the competency and expertise within the inspection team, conducting the walk-through and finally a closing meeting to set out actions and assign responsibilities.
The goal of the audit is to assist in the continuous improvement of the organizations health and safety procedures. The audit should at the very least consider the following:
The use of health and safety software has become more commonplace over the last few years, to an extent that many companies utilizing such software have drastically increased participation while enhancing the efficiency of the process.
By removing much of the administrative part of the data collection side of inspections, many of the day to day safety auditing requirements operational personnel had been tasked with in the past, have now become obsolete. With the result being a leaner and more efficient data analysis and reporting process.
Previously document-heavy health and safety methods involving accident investigation and root cause analysis, behavioral-based safety observations, near miss reporting and non-conformance reporting, can now be done at a much faster pace, allowing for better overall data capture and better analysis.
There are now several different digital solutions available for health and safety inspections that have been designed specifically for EHS teams. For example, there are applications that allow teams to quickly capture data from their inspection sites using mobile devices such as tablets or smartphones, which can then be used to generate automated reports that summarize inspection results quickly and easily.
There are also automated workflows that enable managers to better monitor the progress of their inspection tasks and ensure that nothing slips through the cracks. Additionally, many of these solutions offer real-time analytics so teams can identify potential problems before they become serious issues.
At the end of every inspection, it is important the information obtained is reviewed carefully and where identified as a significant risk, corrective action taken. This is not always a straight forward task and much of the observations and findings may be required to be assessed by subject matter experts to provide a clearer pathway to the best course of action.
The results of the health and safety inspections are indicators of the success or failure of management policies and practices and should be examined for possible changes. Although all identified hazards should ultimately be eliminated or minimized, the responsible section leader must be informed of hazards presenting an immediate danger so that corrective action can be taken in a timely manner.
During final discussions after the inspection, a review may highlight requirements for training, insights as to why certain areas present more overall incidents, establishing priorities for corrective actions and identifying areas where either resources or further in-depth analysis may be required. When considering action plans, it is important to prioritize the risk controls using the hierarchy of controls. This action plan should be discussed amongst the team and agreed upon before deciding to set corrective actions.
The findings can sometimes be used to identify trends and help monitor the effectiveness of a company’s health and safety program. For example, many organizations who may implement a behavioral based safety program may utilize such opportunities to conduct behavioral observations or identify nears misses that may have taken place throughout the walk-through.
There may be times when a remedial action is not available straight away. In such cases, it is important to give a reasonable period of time for action close outs and reasons why a longer timeline may be required.
Through creating, committing, and actively participating in proactive and streamlined site inspection programs, organizations can collectively evaluate and better control risks within their workplaces.
Technology has already changed how EHS teams approach health and safety inspections in profound ways but we’re only beginning to scratch the surface on what’s possible.
Smart safety solutions automate much of the tedious work associated with manual inspections while also providing better insights into potential problems ahead of time so risks can be mitigated proactively rather than reactively after something goes wrong.
It is essential that business leaders set the precedent to such programs and ensure they are given the high level attention they need. Team leaders need to clarify the direction, motivate participation and help align such inspections with the organizations overall goals and visions.
About the author
Adel Lawson is a HSE Professional with over 18 years in corporate, oil and gas, consulting, aviation, construction, facilities management and manufacturing environments.
EcoOnline EHS is a software tool for managing your company's occupational safety and well-being. In the software, you will find ready-made form templates for the assessment of physical workload factors and physical work environment factors.
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