Taking the time to review safety procedures and address any concerns before using new equipment or changing a process is an important tactic to prevent injuries. A common cause of injuries is lack of awareness of a change to a process or piece of equipment.
Processes involve steps to complete a task or activity, including communication with coworkers. Equipment refers to the machinery or tools used to complete a task.
In the aftermath of an accident, our safety professionals often hear the comment, “if the employee had used some common sense, this wouldn’t have happened.” While there is truth in the statement, employers have the power and responsibility to proactively embed those common-sense actions into workplace safety procedures. Follow these steps when you change equipment or processes:
- Stop and gather information: Bring stakeholders together to talk about the need to pause and review safety conditions prior to moving forward.
- Document your review: Use Vigilant’s Model Form, Safety Checklist for Changes to Equipment or Processes after installing or upgrading equipment and before implementing any new procedures that could impact safety. Use the checklist to categorize each process or piece of equipment as either “Good” or “Deficient” and assign actions to any deficient items before applying that process or using that equipment.
- Evaluate affected jobs: Use Vigilant’s Model Form, Job Safety Analysis to evaluate specific jobs and activities that are affected by the changes to processes or equipment. Within the job safety analysis (JSA), you can identify potential hazards and recommend appropriate precautions, such as implementing engineering controls or wearing personal protective equipment (PPE).
- Summarize and move forward: Bring your stakeholders back together and debrief any modifications you decided to implement. Determine how to train affected employees and monitor compliance.
Tips: By stopping to review your process when changes occur in the workplace, you can identify prevention methods that would have been overlooked if you hadn’t paused and evaluated. If you have any questions or would like assistance in reviewing your processes or equipment changes, please reach out to your Vigilant safety professional.
