Task analysis process, industrial safety

The job safety analysis (JSA) [also referred to as the job hazard analysis (JHA)], which is a more simplified form of task analysis, has been a longstanding tool for task and function analysis. JSA has been available and utilized in general industry for many years by the industrial safety community. However, many practitioners do not understand or are simply unfamiliar with the connection between the JSA and the system safety tasks of hazard identification and analysis. It has even been suggested by some in the profession that the JSA itself is a type of oversimplified system safety analysis and, if performed earlier in the job development phase, could be used as the basis of a preliminary hazard analysis for a specific task or set of tasks. However, because JSA is often (if improperly) used to analyze a function only after it has been implemented, much of the data is not factored into the system safety process. The primary purpose of the JSA is to uncover inherent or potential hazards that may be encountered in the work environment. This basic definition is not unlike that previously discussed regarding the various system safety analyses. The primary difference between the two is subtle but important and is found in the end-use purpose of the JSA. Once the job or task is completed, the JSA is usually used as an effective tool for training and orienting the new employee into the work environment. The JSA presents a verbal picture of a specific job. 

The JSA, then, is a specialized approach of task analysis that takes an existing job and analyzes its tasks to specifically identify hazards encountered in the work environment. At the very least, the JSA does have a place within the system safety process as a tool to evaluate the hazards or risks of an existing task or function during the operation phase of the project life cycle. Here we see another connection between the principal elements of the industrial safety process and one of the basic objectives of the system safety effort, namely, that the JSA tries to eliminate or control the risk of hazard exposure in a given task during the life of the project. 

The JSA and the analysis of job or task risk is (or should be) a critical element in the assurance of worker safety and health. However, its potential for success can be severely hindered when the JSA is not utilized or performed properly. As stated earlier in this chapter, it is usually the task supervisor and the work team that will complete the JSA. At the very least, this means that consistency in JSA approach and completion can be as varied as the tasks being analyzed. Ideally, the safety professional should also participate in JSA development to facilitate the process and ensure the proper and complete analysis of the given task. However, in reality, most industrial safety and health practitioners may not always be involved or even present when a JSA exercise takes place. 

It cannot be overemphasized that the principal elements of a sound industrial safety program, with its primary purpose of OSHA compliance, work hazard reduction, assurance of employee/job safety and health, and the evaluation of jobs or tasks (through the ISA or another comparable method), can, in most cases, be achieved through application of the system safety process. The connection between the two programs, while not entirely obvious, is quite understandable, as described above. Perhaps the most important thing to remember here is that the industrial or occupational safety and health professional can utilize the time-proven techniques of hazard reduction and system safety analysis to accomplish the desired goal of both programs ... 

Food authentication is one of the major areas involved in food quality and safety. Several regulations have been implemented to assure correct information and to avoid species substitutions (26). Food species identification has traditionally relied on morphological/anatomical analysis. However, this is a difficult task in the case of closely related species and especially for those products that have been subjected to processing practices. Therefore, there is a strong need for fast and reliable molecular identification methods that provide authorities and food industries the tools needed to comply with labeling and traceability requirements, thus ensuring product quality and protection of the consumer. 

Soszynska, J., Kolowrocki, K., Kaminski, R, Jurdzihski, M., Guze, S. Milczek, B., Golik, P. 2009. Data Mining for Identification and Prediction of Safety and Reliability Characteristics of Complex Industrial Systems and Processes. WP6 - Task 6.2. Preliminary safety and risk analysis and evaluation of a Stena Baltica ferry in variable operation conditions. Sub-Task 6.2.5 - 16.03.2009. Poland-Singapore Joint Research Project, 2007-2010. 

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