Introduction to Fire Safety Management

Introduction to Fire Safety Management
➤ End products must conform to the required quality
and safety standards.
Environment – a safe system must consider (where
necessary):
➤ Control of temperature, lighting and ventilation
➤ Appropriate controls for dust, fumes, vapours, radiation,
chemical and biological hazards
➤ Safe access and egress
➤ Provision of adequate welfare facilities
➤ Noise and vibration
➤ Variations:
➤ In climatic conditions
➤ Due to the time of day or year
➤ Due to other persons in the work environment
➤ Evacuation in the event of an emergency.
Any safe system of work should be designed to combine
these four elements to produce an integrated
method of working which will ensure that tasks are carried
out in the safest way that can be achieved under the
circumstances.
To illustrate how an effective safe system of work
might be developed, it is useful to consider the requirements
for a ‘lone worker’ who by the very term works by
themselves without close or direct supervision.
There are a range of work situations that may involve
lone working and include:
➤ Cleaners (out of hours)
➤ Security staff
➤ Delivery drivers
➤ Installation and maintenance engineers
➤ Warehouse persons
➤ Police offi cers
➤ Social workers.
In addition to those listed above, any member of staff may
work out of normal work hours or be working in a remote
location and as such may be deemed to be lone working.
Using the people, equipment, material and environment
approach detailed above the procedure adopted
would take into account as a minimum:
People – ensuring that the selection process takes
into account the psychological capabilities required
of the role and that adequate training assists in attaining
the required level of competence and confi dence.
Regular periodic visits from their line manager to ensure
that adequate monitoring of operations is maintained.
Equipment – the provision of safe equipment for
the tasks being carried out taking into account only
one person is available. Other equipment including
communications equipment (mobile phone, pager, radio)
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Figure 6.9 Consideration of the people, equipment,
materials and environment is required when conducting a
job safety analysis
to enable regular contact with the line manager and
others in the team must also be considered. Mobile fi rst
aid kit and automatic warning devices in the event of an
emergency should also be made available.
Materials – each work situation would dictate
consideration of a variety of chemicals (cleaners,
delivery drivers, installation and maintenance engineers,
warehouse workers) that persons could come into
contact with or in the case of installation and maintenance
engineers the products conform to the required
quality and safety standards.
Environment – safe access and egress arrangements
which would include arrangements in the event
of an emergency. Any specifi c arrangements for the
provision of adequate welfare facilities, perhaps through
liaison with a third party, must be considered. The safety
of those working in the hours of darkness must be taken
into account and work patterns considered accordingly.
This list is not exhaustive but is used to indicate
how a safe system of work may be considered and then
produced.
6.5.4 Documenting a safe system of work
Having assessed when a safe system of work is needed,
and a competent person has been engaged to assist
in its development, the next stage of the process is to
document the system. As discussed previously it should
be noted that not all safe systems of work will need to
be documented; this decision is likely to be made by the
competent person.
How the system is to be documented should be
considered and refl ect among other issues; the nature of
the operation, the level of control required, who will be
operating it.