Importance and Advantages of Plant Risk Assessment

According to the OHS safety standards and regulations, every industrial plant must conform to the standards of risk assessment inspections for their plants where they might be running, production machinery, heavy tool, or other industrial equipment. All kinds of plants are dependent on the use of various tools and equipment and these have a natural tendency of abrasion over long-term repeated use. OHS secures the safety of all workers and employees by enacting standardized inspection and risk assessment management. The risk assessment management criteria are set according to the OHS. Since equipment and machinery under various circumstances like abrasion, overuse, misuse, and poor maintenance may lead to hazardous accidents, injuries, and even death, the plant management will be liable for litigation and legal offenses if the safety norm of the industrial plant is overlooked or neglected.

The enactment of the World Health and Safety Act has enhanced the importance of conducting plant risk assessments under a professional and certified plant risk management officer. Now a wide range of industrial sectors, including machinery and equipment comes directly or indirectly under the compliance of the plant risk assessment.

Which Plants need Risk Assessment:

While road and rail vehicles, aircraft, or ships do come under the regulation of the World Health and Safety Act, there is a list of equipment and machinery which if used individually or for any industrial purpose requires undergoing plant risk assessment inspections. Some of the major and basic items in the list include

• Scaffolds
• Lifts
• Hoists
• Crane
• Pressure Equipment
• Temporary access equipment
• Explosive powered tools
• Plant amusement structures and systems that are powered
• Turbines, etc.

Identifying Risk by Evaluating the Task:

Plant risk assessment is evaluating and scrutinizing the entire framework of the plant, including machinery or equipment in operation, the condition of each apparatus, employee safety management, loopholes in the system, etc to actually filter the potential risks that could threaten the safety of workers and employees. If this assessment is done properly then it involves a unified team effort, including the supervising staff, employees, machine operators, staff exposed to potential risks, etc. This enables the risk assessment officer to get a comprehensive overview of the plant apart from his individual inspection result. A plant risk assessment includes the following details:

• The functionality of machinery, operation, and methods, substances used in the manufacturing process, electrical requirements, and potential malfunctioning of machinery.
•  This is a multi-dimensional assessment of a unit that includes all aspects of the industry like electrical risks, hazardous substances used, waste disposal management, faulty management, etc. The proper functioning of machinery, working environment, precautionary and safety measures adhered to by the employees, and initiatives taken by the management to implement safety norms are taken under consideration while assessing the risk potential of the plant.
• The assessment procedure also takes into notice the methods of plant operation, employee training, flaws in work, etc.

Benefits of Plant Risk Assessment:

• The plant risk assessment helps to reduce the risk of injuries and accidents.
• It also helps to understand whether the present management system is effective enough to tackle potential hazards.
• Enhances work efficiency by recognizing and eliminating loopholes in plant management and thereby also safeguarding yourself from litigations and legal offenses.
• Machinery and equipment are checked, inspected, and maintained. Therefore, the chances of fault in the machinery decrease, enhancing work efficiency and productivity.

Overall affirming the safety and risk management government regulations empowers your business as per standard industry measures and sets the expectation and reputation in the market for others.