1 Understanding Risk

Understanding Risk … Assessment and Control Training course Session 4

Objectives The objectives of this fourth session are to learn about:  The meaning of the words used in the Holcim OH&S

policy, and the rationale for the policy

 How to assess what the level of risk is in a situation

 How to apply the risk control hierarchy

2 Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

Agenda  The meaning of the words used in the Holcim OH&S

policy, and the rationale for the policy

 How to assess what the level of risk is in a situation

 How to apply the risk control hierarchy

3 Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

The meaning and rationale of the OH&S definitions A general definition for Health and Safety:

 Health and Safety involves the anticipation,

recognition, analysis, evaluation and control of those environmental factors or stresses that may cause sickness, injury, impaired health or well-being among citizens of a community

4 Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

The meaning and rationale of the OH&S definitions OH&S means Occupational Health and Safety We place the highest value on being a responsible and caring employer. There are many reasons why we want to prevent accidents, death or harm at work. They include:  Our moral responsibility to ensure our colleagues return home without being

hurt at work  A safe and healthy workforce will be most likely to achieve other Group

performance targets  Discharging any legal duties on individuals and the organization; as well as  Minimizing our costs for death, accidents and/or disease, illness and injury; &  Avoiding the potential for penalties relating to non-compliance with our

regulatory and legal obligations

People are healthy and safe when their death or harm at work is prevented and so we require that Group companies use an OH&S management system 5 Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

The meaning and rationale of the OH&S definitions  Health and safety is ensured by preventing any person’s

death, illness or injury 

Occupational means involving a workplace, workplace activities or operational plant/equipment that is known to be potentially high risk*

* Examples include cranes and lifting equipment, pressure vessels (for containment of high pressure liquids or gases), open air conditioning cooling towers, etc 6 Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

The meaning and rationale of the OH&S definitions  Health means the absence of disease, illness, death or

permanent disablement and can be physical or mental in nature Example of a physical illness caused by a workplace: Asthma caused by inhaling spray paint mist in a workplace Example of a physical illness caused by a workplace activity: Carbon monoxide poisoning caused by an LPG powered forklift being used inside an enclosed area that is poorly or non-ventilated Example of a physical illness caused by known high-risk plant: Legionnaire’s disease (a pneumonia) due to inhaling Legionella bacteria from a contaminated cooling tower Example of an illness that is mental in nature: Stress … which can be due to a variety of factors and can contribute to physical illness such as heart disease Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

7 June’03/TA/ALT

The meaning and rationale of the OH&S definitions  Safety means the absence of risks that may cause injury,

illness, death or permanent disablement and can be physical or mental in nature Example of a physical injury caused by a risk in a workplace: Cuts and abrasions caused by obstacles that cause tripping and falling at work Example of a physical injury caused by a workplace activity: A lime burn due to exposure to fresh mortar or concrete Example of a physical injury caused by known high-risk plant: A crush injury caused by a crane load slipping Example of an injury that is mental in nature: Mental stress caused by a long period of working hours that exceed the recommendation for normal work 8 Holcim Group Support

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The meaning and rationale of the OH&S definitions  Workplace is any place where work is, is to be, or is likely

to be done by any Holcim employee or any other person acting under the direction of Holcim management Examples: A cement manufacturing plant, an aggregates quarry or a plant making pre-mixed concrete A room that has been rented for presenting the annual financial results of the organization; or A vehicle supplied by an employer for use by an employee for the performance of work A project office located in a client's site, but under Holcim's control 9 Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

The meaning and rationale of the OH&S definitions  Providing healthy and safe workplaces involves the

anticipation, recognition, analysis, evaluation and control of those hazards or factors that may cause disease, illness, injury or impaired health and well-being amongst persons at the workplace or those who are directly impacted by the workplace  Anticipation, recognition, analysis, evaluation and control

of hazards or factors amounts to Hazard Identification & Risk Assessment combined with risk control  By carrying out the process of Hazard Identification &

Risk Assessment and risk control on an ongoing basis, we are striving for zero risk to our employees, contractors and visitors 10 Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

The meaning and rationale of the OH&S definitions  Risk is the chance of something happening that will have

an impact on objectives or targets. It is measured in terms of likelihood and significance/consequence and may arise from an event, an action or from a lack of action  Likelihood is used as a qualitative description of statistical

probability and frequency - It is often given in % terms  Significance/Consequence is the outcome of an event or

situation, expressed qualitatively or quantitatively. This could be negative (ie. a loss or worsening in situation); or positive (ie. a gain or improvement) 11 Holcim Group Support

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The meaning and rationale of the OH&S definitions  To monitor performance is to check, supervise, observe

critically, or record the progress of an activity, action or system on a regular basis in order to identify change. Each Group company will monitor its performance against the requirements of the Holcim OH&S Targets

 By monitoring and improving our performance over a

longer period of time, we will also be able fulfill our long term goal of zero harm to people

 It’s not OK to hurt people … that’s the rationale!!! Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

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Agenda  The meaning of the words used in the Holcim OH&S

policy, and the rationale for the policy

 How to assess what the level of risk is in a situation

 How to apply the risk control hierarchy

13 Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

Risk assessment  “Risk Management is the culture, processes and structures that are

directed towards the effective management of potential opportunities and adverse effects” (AS/NZS 4360) 

eg: We want to manage the Significance/Consequence mentioned earlier that could be negative (ie. a loss or worsening in situation); or positive (ie. a gain or improvement)



To do that, we need to know what the Significance/Consequence we identify actually means in terms of an impact on us; ie: we must assess it

 The first phase of risk assessment process is hazard identification  The purpose of hazard identification is to construct a comprehensive

list of hazards associated with any particular asset, item of plant, work practice, work area etc. The fact that many hazards may exist is not necessarily an indication that there are significant levels of risk because the hazards may be well controlled

 Therefore, it is always important to maintain a clear distinction

between the process of identifying hazards, and subsequently analyzing the risk that is associated with them

Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

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Risk assessment  A hazard is typically defined as, “Anything that has the

potential for causing harm or a potentially damaging energy source"  The key word in the definition of hazard is the word

potential. By defining a hazard as a potential for harm, we are not stating that the harm will actually occur 

So, the notion of hazard is a notion of possible harm and possible future consequences. In hazard identification, we are attempting, through a range of methods, to identify what could happen and the types of energies present in a workplace that could cause injury or illness to people, or property damage

15 Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

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Risk assessment  Hazards maybe identified as different sorts of damaging

energies; eg: 

Thermal, Electrical, Chemical, Radiation, Biological, Vibration, Noise, Gravity, Kinetic, Mechanical, Potential

 Generally hazards are associated with three categories 

People



The workplace layout and general work environment



Work practices

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Risk assessment  Hazards and People 

There are potentially damaging energies associated with people. These are damaging energies associated with physical/muscular exertion, activities such as: - Lifting - Striking an object - Being struck by another object - Pushing/pulling/restraining - Repetitive strain - Postural strain

 Some risks may arise because of mismatches between people, the

tasks that they must do, and the equipment that they must use 

Care must be taken when assessing people as new employees may be at greater risk performing a task than older employees with years of experience behind them. On the other hand younger employees may be 17 more agile and physically fitter than older employees

Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

Risk assessment  Hazards and Workplace Layout & General Environment 

Many different hazards exist in the design and layout of the workplace, and the general work environment. Examples include: - Thermal - Machinery: mobile, fixed - Chemical - Electrical - Noise

 The hazards associated with this category are those that arise from

the type of plant and equipment that are in use, the general design and layout of the workplace and the broader work environment in which the workplace is located 

Usually these types of hazards are the easiest to identify, and often (unfortunately) hazard identification does not proceed beyond this stage 18

Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

Risk assessment  Hazards and Work Practices 

Many hazards arise through work practices, and many workers are exposed to hazards as that; eg: - A chemical hazard may be present in the form of chemicals stored in drums. However the way that workers are exposed to the chemical will depend upon the work practices that are adopted. Particular work practices may also affect the nature of the hazard; eg., a chemical normally in liquid form may be sprayed in an airborne state where it can be easily inhaled

 Identification of hazards in work processes is probably the most

difficult part of hazard identification, and therefore such hazards are often overlooked. Because work practices may change on a daily basis, the nature of hazards and worker exposures to those hazards may also change. Safe work practices are one way of addressing such hazards. For new or unusual tasks, hazard identification and risk assessment should be undertaken before the commencement of the task. This will assist to clarify work practices and any associated OH&S issues 19

Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

Risk assessment The key issue to address in managing OH&S is the management of risk. There will inevitably be many hazards with the potential to cause an impact on objectives existing in a workplace. The key issue to consider is what is the level of risk is actually posed by these hazards. A good OH&S Management System normally attempts to eliminate some hazards and minimize the risk associated with others  Risk Analysis and Assessment 

Simple Risk Assessment - In some situations, risk assessment is simple. For example, the problem and solution may be obvious and the solution may be easily found and implemented, eg. identifying and removing a trip hazard



Risk Calculation Matrix 

One simple but extremely useful methodology for risk analysis is based on a five by five matrix 20

Holcim Group Support

Risk Training: Session 4

June’03/TA/ALT

Risk assessment … LIKELIHOOD Likelihood ranks from A (certain) to E (improbable) with a range of values in between as shown below IMPORTANT: Typically the likelihood scale is logarithmic with each succeeding level being a factor of ten times more or less likely than the adjacent level RANKING

DESCRIPTION OF CLASSIFICATION



A

Expected many times per year



B

Expected about once per year



C

Expected between once A year and once in 10 years



D

Expected between once every 10 years and once every 100 years (possibly occurs only once or twice in the life of a site/plant)



E

Expected between once every 100 years and once every 1000 years (not expected in the life of a

site/plant) 21 Holcim Group Support

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Risk assessment … CONSEQUENCE Consequence can be rated from a ranking of 1 (minor) to 5 (catastrophic), as shown below: RANKING

DESCRIPTION OF CLASSIFICATION



1

Illness, injury requiring first-aid or no treatment



2

Medical (doctor) treatment



3

Single serious (hospitalization) injury



4

Single death or major permanent disablement



5

Multiple deaths

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Risk assessment  Once a risk has been assessed according to the classification descriptions above,

a 5 X 5 risk analysis matrix is then possible in which consequence and likelihood are combined to give a measure or ranking of risk Consequence

1

2

3

4

5

A

H

H

E

E

E

B

M

H

H

E

E

C

L

M

H

E

E

D

L

L

M

H

E

E

L

L

M

H

H

Likelihood

E = Extreme risk - immediate top management action required H = High risk - senior management attention required quickly M = Moderate risk - management responsibility must be specified L = Low risk - manage by routine methods; eg: Work Instructions/SWPs 23 Holcim Group Support

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