What is the unique nature of shutdowns, outages, and turnarounds?
- Rapid buildup of the workforce
- Tight schedule
- Around-the-clock effort
- Special training considerations
What workplace practices on shutdowns, outages, and turnarounds contribute most to improved safety performance?
Key findings revealed companies utilizing these best practices have significantly lowered recordable incidence rates:
- People Resources
- Planning
- Scheduling
- The Formation of a Safety Strategy
- Management Support in Using Safety Professionals
Do outages, shutdowns, and turnarounds require a safety professional? The simple answer is YES! What should management look for in hiring safety professionals? Let’s start by reviewing a safety professional’s job description.
What Do Safety Professionals Do?
According to the American Society of Safety Professionals (Become a Safety Professional & Have a Career in Safety | ASSP)
“Safety professionals advise, develop strategies, and lead workplace safety and health management. They provide advice, support, and analysis to help employers establish risk controls and management processes that promote sustainable business practices. They work to reduce and eliminate fatalities, injuries, occupational illnesses, and property damage. They also advise on health, wellness, and even security.”
Safety professionals should possess a certain level of competency. Let us review a few of the top results.
Understanding Evidence-Based Practices
The ability to collect, analyze, and interpret relevant data to reduce risk associated with workers and processes.
The ability to interpret safety and health performance measurements to create a safe workplace environment.
Good Communication Skills
Safety professionals interact with frontline workers, supervisors, owners, and clients. Practical communication skills are essential. Mutual respect and decision-making must be cultivated to strengthen workers’ safety and health.
They should also have expertise in training by employing various proven techniques.
They must understand and be able to outline for everyone how profit, production, and safety are analogous to achieving zero incidents.
Risk Management
The safety professional and their team should focus on minimizing the effects of loss.
Safety professionals can apply appropriate risk management techniques and blend risk analysis with responsible business practices.
Information and Data Analysis
The safety team will be able to gather information and technology to communicate, manage knowledge, mitigate risk, and support decisions that will give the project the means to achieve zero.
Leadership
Safety professionals can influence the behavior of individuals, systems, and workgroups to facilitate the achievement of shared values.
Professionalism
One of the most essential elements. Professionalism shows accountability by establishing workplace programs and worker safety and health policies in a moral, legal, ethical, and socially responsible manner.
Safety professionals bring a sense of responsibility, knowledge, and commitment to the workplace.