MODULE 1 - CLASS NOTES - MCN401 - INDUSTRIAL SAFETY ENGINEERING
MODULE 1 : CLASS NOTES
Need for safety. Safety and productivity. Definitions: Accident, Injury, Unsafe act, Unsafe Condition, Dangerous Occurrence, Reportable accidents. Theories of accident causation. Safety organization- objectives, types, functions, Role of management, supervisors, workmen, unions, government and voluntary agencies in safety. Safety policy. Safety Officer-responsibilities, authority. Safety committee-need, types, advantages.
SAFETY
Safety is the state of being SAFE
S = spot the
hazard
A = assess the
risk
F = Find a safer
way
E = everyday
Any
method or technique or process which can minimize unwanted events (accidents)
in an industry may be referred to as a method, technique or process of
Industrial safety. Industrial safety is the science and art of identifying,
evaluating and controlling workplace hazards. It includes measure to prevent
human exposures to chemical and physical agents as well as faulty or unsafe work
practices.
NEED
/ OBJECTIVES / IMPORTANCE OF SAFETY
·
To prevent accidents, sudden/major
failures.
·
To create safe working
conditions.
·
To protect the property
and life of the people concerned.
·
To safeguard the health
of the people.
·
To take care of the
environment.
·
To promote green
projects.
SAFETY
AND PRODUCTIVITY
Productivity
is the measure of effective use of resources to produce goods and services.
Safety and productivity are closely related to each other.
1. If
an organization is free from hazards and accidents, then the managerial staff can save their valuable
time otherwise may loose in the following activities,such as
·
Assisting injured
workers.
·
Arranging for the
production of an injured worker to be continued by some other worker.
·
Preparing accident
report.
·
Selecting and training
a new worker to replace the injured person.
·
Investigating the cause
of accident.
Therefore, the managerial staff will possibly be able to perform their managerial functions such as planning, organizing, staffing, directing, controlling, co-coordinating etc. more smoothly which in turn will possibly boost the productivity of the organization.
2. If the workers are mentally ensured that they
are working in a safe working
environment free from hazards and their life is safe in all possible aspects,
then they will possibly work with more
concentration and thus the quality and productivity will increase
considerably.
3. If the workplace is safe, workers will be
highly motivated to perform their jobs in an efficient manner and thus the
productivity will increase considerably.
4. If
the working environment is safe then the labour turnover and absenteeism will
be reduced
5. Each
and every worker will possibly be optimistic and will possibly contribute their
best efforts which in turn improve productivity.
6. If
the working place is safe then there is considerable reduction in accidents and
hence reduction in direct and indirect cost of accidents. Damage to machines,
materials, buildings is also reduced in safe work environment. Thus there is an
improvement in productivity of the organization.
ACCIDENT
An
industrial accident may be defined as:
"An
occurrence which interrupts or interferes with the orderly progress of work in
an industrial establishment".
"An
unexpected, unwanted event which cannot be anticipated in advance".
CAUSES OF ACCIDENTS
Whenever
there occurs an accident, there must be some cause, which may be obvious or
difficult to trace. A large number of factors combine to cause accidents. Each
of these factors is different in different situations accident does not have a
single cause but a multiplicity of causes, which are often closely related.
Basic factors responsible for causing accidents are unsafe acts of the
employees, unsafe working conditions and last but not least the chance
occurrences.
1. Unsafe Acts
Unsafe
act may be defined as the deviation from the normal and correct procedure or
practice. These acts may be result of lack of knowledge or skill on the part of
the employee, certain bodily defects and wrong attitudes. Some of the examples
of the unsafe acts are as follows:
·
Failure on the part of
workers to obtain necessary equipment or warning from other fellow workers of
possible danger.
·
Operating or working at
unsafe speeds, either too fast or too slow.
·
Operating machines or
gadgets without approval of the relevant authority.
·
Throwing materials on
the floor carelessly.
·
Using unsafe equipment,
or using equipment unsafely.
·
Failure on the part of
workers to use safety devices and personal protective equipments.
·
Adopting unsafe or
wrong methods in such operations like loading, unloading, removing, placing
etc.
·
Lifting goods
especially fragile goods improperly.
·
Cleaning, adjusting,
oiling, repairing, etc. or moving on a dangerous equipment.
·
Distracting, tearing,
abusing, quarrelling, day-dreaming, horseplay.
·
Taking unsafe positions
under suspended loads.
2. Unsafe Conditions
Most
of the accidents occur due to unsafe conditions i.e., work- related causes. The
work-related causes are often referred to as technical causes. Thus, unsafe
conditions include:
·
Improper or inadequate
safety guards on machines
·
when machines break
down or Defective equipment
·
when improper personal
protection equipment is installed
·
when mechanical or
construction designs are defective and unsafe
· when control devices,
which have been installed to make the operation of the machines safe and accident
free are lacking or defective
·
when there is an
absence of proper maintenance and supervision of these devices.
·
Hazardous arrangement
of procedure in, and, or around, machines or equipment.
·
Unsafe storage;
congestion; overloading.
·
Inadequate safety
devices.
·
Wrong and faulty
layout, and bad location.
·
Improper illumination -
glare or insufficient light.
·
Improper ventilation -
insufficient air charge, impure air source.
·
Poor housekeeping.
Safety experts are of the view that accidents can happen anywhere. still there are some "high danger" zones. For example, about one-third of industrial accidents occur around hand lift trucks, wheel-barrows, and other handling and lifting areas. The most serious accident usually occurs near metal and working machines and saws, or around transmission machinery like gears, pulleys, and flywheels, on stairs, ladders, walkways, scaffolds, hand rails. Hand tools (like chisels or screw drivers) and electrical equipment (extension cords, electric drop lights, etc.) are other big accident causes.
The
other work related causes of accidents are:
(a)
The job itself- Some jobs are inherently more dangerous than others, such as
the job of crane operator in comparison to that of the foreman. Similarly, work
in some departments (like personnel) is inherently safer than the work in
others (like production department).
(b)
Work schedules- Accidents increase late in the day. They do not usually occur
during the early hours of the work day. They are more frequent during the night
shifts. It is partly due to fatigue and partly due to the fact that night is
the period when one requires rest.
(c) Psychological climate of the work Place- It also affects the accident rate. Psychological, mental and emotional imbalance are at the root of several accidents. Emotionally disturbed and mentally pre-occupied persons meet with more accidents than a normal person. The psychological factors associated with accidents are fatigue, anxiety, tiredness, overwork, monotony, boredom, lack of self-confidence, and frustration. Fatigue often has a psychological origin, and may be due to anxiety, due to the monotony of the job on which a person is employed; due to frustration and inadequate incentives; due to unfair and incorrect methods of selection and promotion; due to the absence of group harm my and social integration; to bad leadership and ineffective organisation; and due to low social prestige.
The
frustrating situations includes sudden or arbitrary withdrawal of desirable objects and of certain privileges which
were enjoyed by an employee; the creation of distrust in an individual and his
ability to work; the creation of distrust on the part of employees of a
particular, individual in the group; restrictions on opportunities for
self-expression; discrepancy between an aspiration and the ability to solve a
problem. All these situations affect for the worse the alertness of an
employee, distract him, make him lose his concentration on the job in hand, and
lead to accidents.
3. Other
Causes (chance occurrences)
These causes of accidents arise mainly
due to unsafe situational and climatic conditions. Some of these causes can be
summarised as follows:
·
Excessively long
duration of work
·
Harsh and domineering
behaviour of the management or supervisors towards workers.
·
Excessive heat in the
factory premises.
·
Feeling of job
insecurity among workers.
·
Defective or reduced
vision of the workers.
·
The nature of
motivation adopted by management towards workers.
·
Reduced hearing
capacity of the workers.
·
The leadership style
adopted by the management in the organisation.
·
Lack of proper
inspection and supervision by the supervisor.
·
Careless handling of
hazardous materials like petrol explosives etc.
·
Marital status of the
workers -Unmarried employees generally have more accidents than married
employees.
·
Addiction to alcohol
and drugs.
·
Smog in the atmosphere.
·
Inexperienced workers
generally sustain injuries than experienced workers.
REPORTABLE ACCIDENTS / TYPES OF
ACCIDENTS
An
accident (industrial) is a sudden and unexpected occurrence in the industry
which interrupts the orderly progress of the work. According to the Factories
Act, 1948: “It is an occurrence in an industrial stablishment causing bodily
injury to a person who makes him unfit to resume his duties in the next 48
hours”
An
industrial injury is defined as “a personal injury to an employee which has
been caused by an accident or an occupational disease and which arises out of
or in the course of employment and which could entitle such employee to
compensation under Workers’ Compensation Act, 1923”.
An
accident may be internal or external.
If a worker falls or an object falls on him, it may not show signs of injury
but they may have fractured a bone or strained a muscle or nerve which is an
internal injury. A deep scratch on the leg or shoulder may show sign of injury
which is an external injury.
An
accident which results in a death or prolonged disability to the victim is a major one. A scratch or cut which does
not seriously disable one is a minor
accident.
An
accident may be fatal or non-fatal.
A fatal occupational injury is defined as one which results in death, whereas a
nonfatal occupational injury is
defined as one which results in at least 4 days absence from work. A worker may
be disabled by injury for a day or week or month or for a few months. If he
recovers from such a disability, his disability is temporary, but if the injury is such that he will never recover
fully, his disability is permanent one.
Figure
shows the various types of accidents.
THEORIES OF ACCIDENT CAUSATION
Accident
causation refers to the factors that are the primary reasons behind an
accident. For occupational health and safety professionals, determining
causation factors in any workplace injury or accident is key. Understanding
what caused an unsafe situation to occur is important in implementing measures
to help prevent a reoccurrence.
There are several major theories
concerning accident causation
1. The
domino theory developed by H. W. Heinrich
2. Human
Factors Theory
3. Accident/Incident
Theory
4. Epidemiological Theory
5. Systems
Theory
6. The
energy release theory, developed by Dr. William
7. Behavior
Theory
·
Ancestry/social
environment
·
Fault of person
·
Unsafe act/mechanical or
physical hazard
·
Accident
·
Injury
The
domino theory of accident causation stipulates that injuries occur because of a
series of factors, one of which is an accident. In the domino theory, all
factors are connected and each of them is dependent on the preceding factor.
This means that personal injury (represented as the final domino) occurs only
as a result of an accident and the accident itself occurs only as a result of a
personal or mechanical hazard.
HUMAN
FACTORS THEORY
Chain
of events that is or was caused by consistent human error lead to an accident.
Factors
that lead to human error are:
·
Overload (action that
exceeds the ability of component to handle the amount)
·
Inappropriate Response
·
Inappropriate
Activities
Overload
·
Environmental Factors
(noise, Distractions)
·
Internal Factors
(Personal problems, stress)
·
Situational Factors
(Instructions not clear/risk level to high)
Inappropriate
Response
·
Know about the hazard
but not doing anything about it.
·
Removing safeguards
·
Ignoring safety rules
Inappropriate
Activities
·
Not trained to do the
job that is being done.
·
Not judging the degree
of risk correctly is another factor of the Human factors
SAFETY ORGANIZATION
The
safety organization will depend on the size and complexity of the plant. For a
large plant Safety Director is usually appointed & reports to the Managing Director. The safety manager's responsibilities are
listed in the safety policy. The safety manager co-ordinates the safety
activities in association with other line managers.
OBJECTIVES
/ FUNCTIONS OF SAFETY ORGANISATIONS
1. Developing
and Implementing "The Company Safety Plan".
·
Formulating a complete
plan.
·
Implementing the plan
and coordinating the implementation work.
·
Setting up safety
regulation and enforcing.
2. Inspection
to locate unsafe conditions or unsafe regulations.
Categorizing: (A) Very Unsafe (B) Unsafe (C) Less Unsafe
3. Organizing
First Aid Facilities.
4. Organizing
Worker's Insurance.
5. Organizing
Safety Audit and Implementing Recommendations of Audit Reports.
6. Formulating
Safety Procedures and Safety Documentation.
7. Formulating
Procedures of Accident Investigation. Investigating injuries
8. Ensuring
that Corrective action is taken to avoid recurrences.
9. Maintaining
work injury and illness records.
10. Organizing
Workers Compensation and Resettlement.
11. Analyzing
Cases, Records for clues to prevention of future injuries and illness.
12. Preparing
reports for various members of management on the current safety, experi-
ence
of the company and justifying safety measures, Safety Budgeting.
13. Safety
Facility Planning and Follow-up.
14. Making
Health Studies to discover and correct unhealthy situations.
15. Consulting
with Governmental Agencies.
16. Obtaining
Insurance Coverage for Workers and Plant
17. Acting
as an Adviser to other Departments and Top management on safety matter.
18. Publicising
Safety Requirements, Procedures and Importance.
19. Supervising
the procurement and distribution of personal protective equipment.
20. Checking
on company Compliance with Central, State, and Statutory, local Regulations on
Safety and Health.
21. Checking
on or aiding in Human Resource Development in safety.
Additional
functions of safety manager with concerned departments
1. Provision
of First Aid and other medical services and cooperating with a separate medical
department
if there is one.
2. Administration
of worker's compensation insurance.
3. Comprehensive
Insurance of Plant and Personnel.
4. Fire
prevention and fire Protection.
5. Security.
6. Promotion
and Career Growth of Safety Department Personnel.
ROLE OF MANAGEMENT IN
SAFETY
It is the responsibility of Management
to ensure that a safety manual is prepared which shall include the following:
·
Occupational
Safety and Health (OS and H) policy
outlining the commitment of the management for establishing, maintaining,
monitoring and reviewing the various elements of the Safety Management System.
·
Safety
organization at plant level with
responsibilities.
·
Safe
procedures for carrying out various activities.
·
Identification
of hazards that could give rise to the potential
of injury, health impairment or death and measures to overcome such hazards.
· Procedure for obtaining permission to work for carrying out operations which may affect the safety of the human beings.
·
Accident
reporting and investigation.
·
Plans
and procedures to achieve the objectives and
targets set by the management.
·
Feedback
system for management review at a prescribed
frequency.
·
Appointment
of competent persons for carrying out inspection,
testing and certifying various equipment, structures and environment for
carrying out jobs safely.
The management shall also ensure the
Health, Safety and Welfare of all workers while they are at work in the plant
by implementation of following aspects.
·
maintenance
of plant and systems of work in the plant that
are safe and without risks to health;
·
the
arrangements in the plant for ensuring safety
and absence of risks to health in connection with the use, handling, storage
and transport of articles and substances;
·
the provision of such information, instruction, training and
supervision as are necessary to ensure the health and safety of all workers
at work;
·
suitable
personal protective equipments, safety
appliances, and clothing and to ensure their proper use.
·
First
aid and in-house Medical facilities
and further medical treatment facilities to the workers whenever injured while
at work.
·
carrying out regular safety inspection of plant and
machinery and arranging periodical internal and external safety audits.
·
conducting investigation of accidents and to
implement the recommendations of the investigation team.
·
motivating
the workers on the safety awareness
programmes.
·
encouraging
the active participation of the workers in promoting safety through Safety Committee and to
implement the recommendations.
ROLE OF SUPERVISORS IN
SAFETY
·
Advice
the Management in planning and organising
measures for effective control of personal injuries and safety management.
·
To monitor effectiveness of the action taken or proposed to minimize
number of personal injuries as well safety culture.
·
Advice
the procurement department in ensuring safe and
quality availability of personal protective equipment. (PPEs)
·
Act
as nodal point for coordinating/carrying out
plant safety audit and inspection etc.
·
Promote safety in the
plant and act as Advisor to the committees
set up for this purpose.
·
stop
any of the job/act which in his judgement is
unsafe and can cause injury to any person.
·
Imparting training and education to all
categories of employees (experienced, novice or new entrants as well as
transferred) in safety procedures and norms.
·
Assessment of need of
safety procedures and their proper
enforcement.
·
Regular
testing and monitoring of the working
environment, plants etc.
·
Active
participation in safety and housekeeping
committees.
·
Regular
and thorough safety inspections and to exhort
the supervisors for proper repair and maintenance.
·
Acceptance
of direct responsibility in the matter of safety
programmes.
·
Investigation
of all accidents (fatal and non-fatal)
and preparation of injury reports.
· Maintain record as necessary relating to accidents, dangerous occurrences, operational health and environment.
·
Assignment
of special duty for certain experienced employees
to help out new entrants or transferred employees not quite conversant with the
plant and safety norms.
·
Carrying out of monthly safety meetings.
·
Assisting
the personnel to cope with emergency
situations as for example accidents due to fire gas leaks etc.
·
Arrangement
of special training in case of new
equipments or work procedures.
·
Improvement
of the safety programme and to enhance the
effectiveness of the same.
ROLE OF WORKMEN IN SAFETY
·
Knowledge of safety
norms, rules, regulations, laws, codes etc. in connection with safety
management.
·
Follow instructions,
rules and regulations regarding safety.
·
Follow orders of the
authorities in the matter of safely.
·
Promote and Support
safety culture in work place
·
Pointing out to the
authorities any gap in the work procedures, defective tools and machineries, defective
controls and lack of repair and maintenance which may result in hazardous
situations.
·
Check on personal
habits, as for example alcoholism, drug addiction, untidy habits and manners
and clumsy working etc.
ROLE OF UNIONS IN SAFETY
·
Cooperation with the
government and insurance companies to locate the unsafe conditions or any
defective or unsafe acts being followed in the undertaking after thorough
inspection of the workplace concerned.
·
Organisation of
training exclusively for safety so that the problem of safety is jointly faced
by the trade union leaders as well as the workers.
·
Observation and
collection of data regarding safety matters including working under hazardous
situation in workplace, non-compliance with safety rules etc.
·
A charter of demands
may be put up to improve working conditions etc. and to negotiate with the
management to reach an accord.
ROLE OF GOVERNMENT AND VOLUNTARY
AGENCIES IN SAFETY.
(i)
Framing of safety laws and regulations
and their enforcement. Safety laws and regulations must be framed with due
care taking due account of the prevailing conditions in the industries
concerned. Enforcement of safety laws and regulations can be effected through
various labour inspectorates, mines inspectorates, factory inspectorates and
other agencies
(ii) Research, development and testing. The various state services including labour inspectorates should have adequate laboratory and other facilities in the direction of research, development and testing which should include testing of materials and equipments, assessment of working conditions including noise pollution and various other monitoring processes like air pollution control and monitoring. Even the manufacture of proper machine guards, equipments and their quality control can be handled by various public authorities and social organisations.
(iii)
Safety organisations and associations.
Safety organisations and associations could be state sponsored or by social
organisations. The functions of these safety organisations and associations are
to promote safety in industries as for example national safety council having
its headquarters in Mumbai is engaged in promotion of safety
(iv)
Cooperation among the inspectorate’s
management and workers. Utmost cooperation is warranted among
inspectorates, management and workers to create a pleasant atmosphere where the
provisions of safety norms could be maintained by proper interaction
(v)
Advisory and educative role of state
services. The state services have to shoulder responsibility in
disseminating the knowledge and norms of safety through its labour inspectorate
in the form of safety booklets, safety leaflets, safety posters, safety reports
etc. for accident prevention. In India this task is performed by government
departments, government sponsored organisations, national safety council etc.
(vi)
Setting up of model state-owned
industries. Certain state-owned industries could be set up as ideals. These
industries can be so perfectly developed that, these can act as models to be
followed by private industrial entrepreneurs.
(vii)
Audio visual aids in safety management. The
government sponsored organisations, the private industrial establishments and
other social activists can develop programmes to inculcate the safety
management ethos among the workers and the public by arranging suitable exhibitions,
establishing museums, advertising through media, holding safety workshops,
observing safety weeks and through other safety related activities.
SAFETY POLICY
The
company must have a written Safety Policy. The policy refers to the principle
and directions for course of actions to be adopted and followed by the company.
Policy is above the rules and practices. Rules and practices are made on the
basis of company's policy. Many companies may not have written safety policy.
This shows the management's lack of interest in setting safety goals.
Policy
should have following features:
·
The policy should focus
long term objective of the company.
·
All the management
level personnel must believe in the policy.
·
The policy is accepted
and committed at all the levels in the company for purpose of daily actions.
·
The policy should
indicate the scope for decisions and descriptions at lower management levels.
·
Safety Policy should be
a part of company's management policy.
·
Management must have a
written safety policy and direct the efforts for safety of personnel and plant
during construction, operation and maintenance by setting goals, planning,
organizing and monitoring to achieve the goals.
Safety
policy should include the following:
·
Management's intent and
desire to achieve safety of personnel and plant.
·
Scope of safety
activities to be covered.
·
Organization and
responsibilities and accountability.
· Safety Authority.
·
Safety Documentation.
·
Rules, acts and
Standards.
·
Safety Audit Team and
interval of Safety Audits.
SAFETY COMMITTEE
safety
committee should be constituted in the organization and is composed of members
from various departments including management, frontline workers, and office
staff. A safety committee should be constituted which shall be represented by
equal number of representatives of management and employees. The safety
committee shall also include the Medical officer, and safety specialists. Hence
an effective safety committee should be large enough to broadly represent the
workforce. The safety committee shall meet at regular intervals at least once
in a month
Safety
committees provide a formal mechanism for consultation among employees on
safety matters. The safety committees enable direct communication between management
and employees. employees' practical experience and knowledge will be shared
during the meeting . Management strengthens
mutual trust and confidence through actions taken to improve safety. Safety
committee identifies best practices and provide opportunity to everyone to
provide input, post questions, and raise concerns.
The
main functions of the Safety Committee shall be:
·
To identify probable
causes of accident and unsafe practices and to suggest remedial measures.
·
To stimulate interest
of employer and workers in safety by organizing safety weeks, safety
competition, talks and film shows on safety, preparing poster or taking similar
other measures as and when required or as necessary.
·
To go round the work
area with a view to check unsafe practices and detect unsafe conditions and to
recommend remedial measures for their rectification including first-aid,
medical and welfare facilities.
·
To look into the health
hazards associated with handling different type of explosives, chemicals and
other materials and to suggest remedial measures including use of proper PPE.
·
To suggest measures for
improving welfare amenities in the work area and other miscellaneous aspects of
safety, health and welfare in various activities.
·
To bring to the notice
of the employer the hazards associated with use, handling maintenance of the
equipment used during the course of various activities.
KTU
MODEL QUESTIONS
1. Explain
the responsibilities of safety officer in a plant
2. Which
are the various accident causation theories? Explain.
3. Define
terms: Accident, Reportable accident, Dangerous occurrence.
4. Differentiate
Unsafe act and Unsafe conditions with suitable examples
5. Discuss
the significance of a safety committee in improving the safety performance of
an Industry
6. List
the various accident causation theories and explain any one in detail. (14
Marks)
7. Discuss
the significance of safety policy in reducing the accidents. (4 Marks)
8. Safety
and productivity are the two sides of a coin’. Are you agreeing with this
statement? Explain with your arguments.
Corrections will be done with proper acknowledgement.
Thank you
Dr Manoj Kumar B