Audits Continuous

Table 13.6 SEMS Rule (Audits) Continued SEMS Rule 12.4 Audit Plan...

Some audits continue to be imdertaken against design standards, rather than against the likelihood of crashes (an experience issue). Some TDesign and Construct contracts struggle to effectively deal with road safety issues within the audit process. 

The Canadian experience with Road Safety Audits continues to be positive and accepted in one form or another across the country. A national educational programme implemented by the Transportation Association of Canada (TAC) dramatically increased the number of qualified auditors. The instructors for the TAC programme were the authors of the TAC publication on Road Safety Audits and are all experienced auditors. The provinces of Alberta and British Columbia have produced Road Safety Audit manuals. 

Target Stores, the North American retaiier, requires its suppiiers to sign an agreement that they wiii compiy with Target s requirements on suppiy chain security and risk management. Pfizer, the pharmaceuticai company, also has clearly established performance standards for its suppliers in terms of supply chain risk management which are audited continuously. 

Implementation of the programme commenced with the first aviation security audit taking place in November 2002 and between three and four audits continue to be conducted around the world each month. The 35th Session of the Assembly held from 28 September to 8 October 2004 mandated ICAO to maintain strict confidentiality of all State-specific information derived from audits conducted under the Universal Security Audit Programme (USAP). However, in order to promote mutual confidence in the level of aviation security between States, the Assembly urged aU Contracting States to share, as appropriate and consistent with their sovereignty, the results of the audit carried out by ICAO and the corrective actions taken by the audited State, if requested by another State . " ... 

Issuance of a United States patent transforms a patent appHcant into a patentee, and new concerns may arise relevant to management. For example, the patent should be reviewed to determine formal and substantive correctness. An audit should be taken regularly to determine whether there is a continuing justification to pay the maintenance fees required to keep the patent in force during its effective period. The patentee or patent assignee may have to address concerns of patent infringement or patent vaHdity. 

Conformance to one of the first three ISO standards is verified by third-party audit for which the auditee pays the auditor a fee. Continued conformance is assured through periodic reaudit by the third party. The ISO 9000 standard is not a product quahty standard. Conformance to ISO 9001 or 9002 ensures that the customer receives product in conformance to mutually agreed-upon specifications. Other agreed-upon requirements are also met. 

Measurements and Audits. The enabling element of continuous improvement is measurement. An old rule of thumb says that increased accuracy in measuring an energy use ultimately yields a reduction in use equal to 10% of the increased closure of the balance. A basic principle of economics is that any thing that is free is used in excess, ie, an unmetered electrical use is bigger than expected by at least 10%. Metering of the cost elements at each unit in a chemical plant provides effective accountabhity. Measurements should be linked via computer software to production as weh as to weather to result in maximum feedback. 

Now you can reconsider the material balance equations by adding those additional factors identified in the previous step. If necessary, estimates of unaccountable losses will have to be calculated. Note that, in the case of a relatively simple manufacturing plant, preparation of a preliminary material-balance system and its refinement (Steps 14 and 15) can usefully be combined. For more-complex P2 assessments, however, two separate steps are likely to be more appropriate. An important rule to remember is that the inputs should ideally equal the outputs - but in practice this will rarely be the case. Some judgment will be required to determine what level of accuracy is acceptable, and we should have an idea as to what the unlikely sources of errors are (e.g., evaporative losses from outside holding ponds may be a materials loss we cannot accurately account for). In the case of high concentrations of hazardous wastes, accurate measurements are needed to develop cost-effective waste-reduction options. It is possible that the material balance for a number of unit operations will need to be repeated. Again, continue to review, refine, and, where necessary, expand your database. The compilation of accurate and comprehensive data is essential for a successful P2 audit and subsequent waste-reduction action plan. Remember - you can t reduce what you don t know is therel... 

Each on-site audit, including initial and surveillance audits, shall include a review of supplier internal audit and management review results and actions and progress made toward continuous improvement targets. 

You will need to provide evidence of continual improvement since the previous audit. 

You need an improvement system that causes improvement opportunities to be identified. Relying on chance encounters will not create the conditions needed for continuous improvement. The data that needs to be analyzed will be generated by a particular process and this process governed by particular documented procedures. By having already placed instructions in these procedures for certain data to be transmitted to your data analysts, you can cause opportunities to be identified. Other opportunities that are less dependent on product or process data may arise from the audit process and particular projects such as benchmarking, customer and supplier surveys. 

It is easy to buy safety equipment. All we need is money, and if we make enough fuss we get the equipment in the end. It is much more difficult to make sure the equipment is kept in full working order when the initial enthusiasm has faded. All procedures, including testing and maintenance procedures, are subject to a form of corrosion more rapid than that which affects the steelwork and can vanish without trace once managers lose interest. A continuous auditing effort is needed to make sure that procedures are maintained. 

Procedures should be established to periodically monitor all operations that may have an environmental impact, and similar scheduled periodic checks should be made to ensure that procedures and operations are still in line with regulatory and other requirements. If equipment is involved in the monitoring process then procedures should also be in place to ensure correct calibration. Procedures are also needed to record any preventative or corrective actions identified and to ensure that they are completed to schedule. The whole EMS should be audited periodically to check that it is consistent with the planned policy and has been properly implemented. The details of audits should be discussed and reviewed by management at the highest level with a view to continuous improvement through the modification of both policy and procedures. 

For laboratories seeking external accreditation of their work, audits must be planned and written down so that the laboratory can show that they are being carried out. You should note that a laboratory will not be criticized for finding problems when they audit their work. The important thing is to be on the lookout for problems, to find them where they exist and to put them right. No laboratory should rely solely on periodic assessments by an external body to ensure that standards of quality are continuously maintained. There are a number of reasons for this. 

Examples of Quality Audit report forms are shown in Tables 9.5 and 9.6 at the end of this chapter. Table 9.5 shows Report Form 1 which includes a record of what has been examined, so that subsequent audits can examine other aspects of the laboratory s operations. Note that when improvement actions are required, the form records not only what needs to be done, but also by when it must be completed, as shown in Table 9.6 (Report Form 2). The form is signed by the auditor and the responsible person from the area being audited. In the UK, the accreditation body UKAS refers to the corrective action as improvement action . This further emphasizes the continual improvement aspect of the ISO/IEC 17025 and ISO 9001 Standards. The examples shown in Tables 9.5 and 9.6 will probably have to be modified to meet a laboratory s particular requirements. It should also be remembered that both report forms should indicate (usually as a footer or header) the title of the document, its issue date, issue number, who authorized the document, page number and total number of pages. 

The secretary not only can but must inspect and audit chemical facilities and determine regulatory compliance. If the secretary finds a facility not in compliance, the secretary must write to the facility explaining the deficiencies found, provide an opportunity for the facility to consult with the secretary, and issue an order to comply by a date determined by the secretary. If the facility continues to be out of compliance, the secretary may fine and, eventually, order the facility to close. 

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