SMS Safety Management

The Introduction will also highlight anecdotal findings from these different industries of the need for more tools rather than theories on SMS. Safety management systems will be defined in this chapter from the standpoint of equipping oiganizations with risk-resistant strategies. 

ISM Code element 10 focusing on maintenance of ship and equipment inter alia states that The Company should establish procedures in its SMS (Safety Management System) to identify equipment and technical systems the sudden operational failure of which may result in... 

The UK government enquiry into the Piper Alpha disaster in the North Sea in 1988 has had a significant impact on working practices and equipment and has helped to improve offshore safety around the world. One result has been the development of a Safety Management System (SMS) which is a method of integrating work practices, and is a form of quality management system. Major oil companies have each developed their own specific SMS, to suit local environments and modes of operation, but the SMS typically addresses the following areas (recommended by the Cullen Enquiry into the Piper Alpha disaster) ... 

The site manager (SM) is typieally the on-site representative and is responsible for maintaining eontaet with the host (elient, eustomer, ete.), the PM, and the health and safety manager (HSM). The SM is also responsible for implementation of the HASP. The SM reports to the PM and works direetly with the elient in most eases. 

The main purpose of this research is to design a protocol which provides companies in the chemical process industry with a better understanding of possible indicators of an accident, to enable them to further enhance their Safety Management Systems (SMS). 

In some industries, the safety control structure is called the safety management system (SMS). In civil aviation, ICAO (International Civil Aviation Authority) has created standards and recommended practices for safety management systems and individual countries have strongly recommended or required certified air carriers to establish such systems in order to control organizational factors that contribute to accidents. 

The activities undertaken by management to establish and operate an effective SMS are no different to those used to manage any other business. The same management features that underpin and distinguish organizations achieving business excellence form the basis of effective safety management. The SMS would be expected to cover as a minimum ... 

Focuses on risk control and safety management system (SMS). 

The following issues shall be addressed by the safety management system (SMS) identification and evaluation of major hazards—adoption and implementation of procedures for systematically identifying major hazards arising out of normal and abnormal operation and the assessment of their likelihood and severity. 

This commitment, however, involves more than a cursory statement to promote safety at all costs. It involves committing the organization, its board of directors, managers, and employees to a long-term, ongoing, structured process aligned to the constant identification and elimination of workplace risks, which can only be achieved by the implementation and maintenance of a world s best-practice safety management system (SMS). 

Safety culture change is the sum of all the activities aimed to reduce risk and subsequent loss at the workplace. It involves upstream activities (before the loss), midstream activities (during the loss), and downstream activities (after the loss). Upstream activities are the most important actions in safety management and involve all the management controls required by a structured SMS. 

It is apt at this stage to redefine the modem safety management terms and definitions used in this book. There still exists confusion in the safety industry concerning the words accident and incident. The term incident is so widely used and misused that the term near miss has almost become obscure. Because near-miss incident recording is one of the main elements in a world s best practice (i.e., meeting the highest international safety standards) SMS, it s important that it be redefined and renamed so that its important identity can be maintained and recognized. 

The second link in the accident sequence is lack of control. This lack of safety management control could be a weak safety systan in place, no safety system standards, noncompliance to the standards, or a total lack of a structured safety management system (SMS). This is often indicated by a negative or nonexistent safety culture. This triggers off the basic causes of accidents. If no formal SMS is in place, this would be classified as an inadequate control system. 

A common factor in all accredited safety management systems (SMS) is an element that calls for management leadership and commitment to the safety and health process. It is almost guaranteed that any attempt to change or improve the safety culture at any workplace will fail if there is not total commitment, leadership, and management involvement from the executive right down to and including frontline supervision. 

The safety aspects of management are a vital part of creating safety culture change, and the safety management system (SMS) is the vehicle for the change. Safety management can be summarized as follows ... 

The following principles indicate the importance of management s role in safety culture change. The implementation of an SMS must have the full support of the executive management and must be driven by management at all levels. Management must also set the example, and as leaders, participate in the safety management system. 

Since the SMS is management driven, these basic safety management principles are vital for the implementation and maintenance of the system, without which safety culture change would be almost impossible. 

Health and safety standards are targets or objectives that the company wants to achieve. They are measurable management performances. A structured safety management system (SMS) consists of a number of health and safety standards. Each element should have at least one standard, and some elements will require more than one standard. 

The OHSAS standards covering occupational health and safety management are intended to provide organizations with the elements of an effective SMS that can be integrated with other management reqnirements and help organizations achieve safety and economic objectives. 

This standard, entitled Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems— Guidelines for the Implementation of OHSAS 18001 2007, is an ideal guideline for the implementation of an SMS that will meet world s best practice. 

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