Performance self-auditing

The EPA has prepared an audit protocol for use by LEAs and contractors that want to perform self-audits covering asbestos and AH ERA compliance. ... 

Self-audit is a monitoring device used to establish any vaiyiiig degrees of detail or performance of an organization to define areas of deficiency and to correct such deficiencies before they cause further problems. 

Constituting a first filter for suppliers within the oil industry, FPA is an industry-wide initiative that has established standard performance criteria. Not only has it decreased search costs, but has also encouraged competition and self-auditing amongst suppliers, providing a feedback mechanism that highlights their faults. 

A good practice many facilities have adopted is the use of a standard protocol for performing self- and third-party audits of their process safety management system or RMP prevention program performance. This chapter provides some examples of ... 

Scoring systems of this t5q>e permit managers to undertake a self-audit of the performance of their areas of responsibility. However, rather than carry out a comprehensive audit of all areas of responsibility occasionally, greater benefit may be derived by assessing one aspect only each month. 

I The detailed enforcement reports compiled from the Analysis Information Online website can prove to be an invaluable tool for the transportation professional. Most safety managers know their major weaknesses as they relate to safety comphance. By reviewing the reports provided, safety managers can see how their peers are performing, areas enforcement may be focusing, and problem areas for the industry or a region. Objectively use this data as selection criteria for areas to self-audit at your motor carrier. You may want to ask yourself, How are we doing with that ... 

By performing a self-audit on yoru- Controlled Substances and Alcohol BASIC (Behavioral Analysis and Safety Improvement Category), you may be able to reduce the nrunber of violations and accidents attributed to your carrier. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) suggests using a safety management cycle as a means of continuously improving yoru- safety comphance efforts. 

Management reviews are conducted based on the review inputs and any decisions and actions taken as a result of the management review are the review output . The information taken as input to the management reviews could be the results from audits and self-assessment of the laboratory, feedback from customers and results from benchmarking activities, the laboratory activity performance, the status of corrective and preventive action... 

An example can be taken from the accreditation systems, in which, in addition to QA audits, departments become involved in self-inspection. Each department can identify a QA representative whose daily responsibility is to review compliance issues, to look at the overall quality policy of the company, and to ensure that between QA audits, self-inspection is performed and that a departmental review is made of these findings with action points and a time plan identified. 

Packaging and labelling operations are often performed after the release of the bulk product and in accordance with specific requirements of different trials. These operations are of paramount importance for the integrity of clinical trials. In this respect, self inspection or independent audits, as referred to in the Community... 

Within the European Union, many organisations have decided on a voluntary basis to implement environmental management systems based on EN ISO 14001 1996 or the EU Eco-management and audit scheme EMAS. EMAS includes the management system requirements of EN ISO 14001, but places additional emphasis on legal compliance, environmental performance and employee involvement it also requires external verification of the management system and validation of a public environmental statement (in EN ISO 14001 self-declaration is an alternative to external verification). There are also many organisations that have decided to put in place non-standardised EMSs. 

The validation of data also is an important step in the process. Validation begins at the station with standard operating procedures for self-consistency of operations and maintenance and with systematic calibration of instruments. Air quality instruments are not particularly reliable so that frequent, careful calibration is required for useful data acquisition. Validation of data is continued after transmission before archiving. To maximize reliability, validation involves a dedicated scientist and engineer whose experience permits identification of possible errors or inconsistencies in reported observations. Finally, the validation process is cross-checked with station performance audits and laboratory intercomparisons to identify discrepancies in analytical procedures. This chain of activity generally makes air quality a rather expensive commodity, a fact that is not appreciated by many users. 

In an article published in the October 1998 issue of Professional Safety and titled What Measures Should We Use, and Why , Dan Petersen questions the value of packaged audits, giving examples of studies that show that audit results did not always correlate to a firm s accident experience. There is a history of that sort of thing with respect to packaged audits in which an audit guide is used that may not be sufficiently relative to the actual safety practices and needs in the entity being audited. Petersen concluded that the self built audit—one that accurately measures performance of a firm s own safety system—was viewed as the answer. To constmct such an audit, Petersen says, a firm must define ... 

BOEM should use this information, along with information from BOEM inspection reports and operator self-inspection plans and reports, to conduct selective audits. The results of such audits should be used to encourage organizations to improve their safety performance. BOEM should strongly encourage industry to incorporate any lessons learned into designs for worker safety. 

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