What are the best ways to create a safety culture in a high-risk industry?

One thing that I've found helpful is for leadership at every level of the organisation to commit to ensuring that all personnel under their control execute work in a safe manner through consistent practices as laid out in their critical to life saving rules without taking any short-cuts. There's need for a deliberate coaching approach to engage and appeal to the minds of those that one is responsible over in safety matters and people must be free to contribute to such without fear of retribution. Training and coaching on task specific safety issues, making resources available for safety related activities, task observations and emphasising on making everyone a colleague's keeper/coach goes a long way in sustaining a safety culture.

Em minha opinião para termos um ambiente seguro em plantas de alto risco vejo como fundamental termos um ambiente onde haja respeito e confiança entre líderes e liderados e e virce versa.Sem a confiança não teremos um ambiente propício.Precisamos de um ambiente onde haja diálogo aberto e transparente e empoderamento.Viví algumas experiências onde a falta de confiança contribuiu definitivamente para ocorrência de acidentes!Quando você só fala o que o seu “chefe” quer ouvir e não o que acontece no genba,você estará alinhando os furos do queijo.

Start with focusing on high risk tasks and activities in isolation. In the Australian construction industry they are already categorised and legislated, making it easier to identify and subsequently assess them and design appropriate controls to implement accordingly.

In high risk industry, some ways to create safety culture are;*Convincing employees that regulations dealing with safety are for their wellness first and latter production, profit, targets etc.*Encouraging employees to raise a concerns about unsafety situations at work environment without hesitation (Even if the situations are caused by them).*Making them believe that there is not a new mistakes about safety, there is new people who make same mistakes.*Creating hazard free environment employers give importance to engineering resolutions on processes.*If instructions dont work, picking and seperating the employee who insists behaving unsafely in high risk areas for the sake of others.*Preventing misscommunication in multinational environment

La définition de la vision de sécurité est pour moi la base de la pyramide : une vision claire facilitera l'acception et l'adhésion de tous.

El personal debe estar bien motivado y bien formado, debemos hacerlos sentir orgullo por el trabajo que desarrollan en el día a día y tener todas las herramientas y recursos necesarios para desarrollar las actividades de manera segura, también debes tener cabezas en la organización que motiven y guíen con el ejemplo.

Cuando los empleados se sienten involucrados y empoderados, se sienten más responsables de la seguridad y más propensos a tomar medidas para garantizar la seguridad. Se puede lograr haciendo: Realizando un levantamiento completo de todos los riesgos, desde los más probables a los más improbables. Creando un programa de participación de los empleados en la seguridad. Capacitando en materia de seguridad a todos los empleados. Creando un sistema de reconocimiento de la seguridad. Los departamentos de seguridad industrial están para asesorarnos, acompañarnos, guiarnos, pero la responsabilidad es de cada uno.

The following attributes would help an in developing an effective process safety culture: -Maintain a sense of vulnerability to Process Hazard. -Empower individuals to successfully fulfill their safety responsibilities. -Defers to expertise: The organization places a high value on the training and development of individuals and groups. -Ensures open and effective communications. -Establishes a questioning/learning environment: Organization strives to enhance risk awareness and understanding to continuous improvement in process safety performance. -Fosters mutual trust: Employees trust managers to do the right thing in support of process safety. -Provides timely response to process safety issues and concerns

In my experience, I find engaging employees & contractors as key soft skill that is underemployed. Specifically, leaders should appeal to the heart and not simply set up systems and provide resources. Ultimately, it’s the individual to use what has been provided or ignore the same altogether. When I engage people, I try to understand the impact of, say, a potential safety incident. We then discuss how such incident would affect the person and his/her life thereafter. Examples include, loss of employment, disability, death etc. These would bring suffering to self, spouse, children, dependents, etc. Indeed, such discussions appeal to the persons heart in a manner that they start owning safety themselves rather than doing it just to comply.

Not only in high risk industrial environment but also all levels of industrial sites, admiring of employees for good behaviours especially on safety, helps to improve safety culture and sense of belonging to company

Consultation is the key. I agree that it has to be lead from the top to be believed, but by consulting with the workforce and including them in workplace decision making rather than imposing them, the workforce feel valued and will lead and adopt change more freely.

Leading by example is the best way to promote safety culture. When leaders take in consideration identifying risks & controls before an activity, the same things cultivates down in hierarchy.

Actions speak louder than words. I repeat , actions speak louder than word words 😀 Top management commitment & compliance with HSE protocols /Standards in any industry is the most important part to successful implementation of HSE policies & procedures.

If you are going to talk the talk, you need to walk the walk! No good talking about issues and then not following up. People just switch off!

Creating a safety culture in a high-risk industry demands a concerted effort focused on leadership commitment, employee involvement, and robust safety practices. Leaders must lead by example, visibly prioritising safety and communicating its significance as a core organisational value. Actively engaging employees in safety decision-making processes and providing continuous, industry-specific training fosters a sense of ownership and promotes a culture of shared responsibility. Open communication channels for reporting safety concerns, along with recognition and accountability systems, contribute to a transparent safety environment. Measurement through key performance indicators and benchmarking also comes into play.

More data, these days can be good and bad. There can be too much focus on bulk raw numbers or reactive rates that don't measure safety outcomes, or highlight safety problems, in fact, interpreted poorly, these numbers can mask safety problems. If you are analysing raw data or relying on basic functions of a database or BI tool to do cross tabulations, then, you are likely not finding and fixing problems but are probably a victim of the GIGO effect i.e., garbage in, garbage out. An experienced person with good operational knowledge and solid expertise in data structuring, taxonomic analysis and inferential or prescriptive statistics needs to do the work and find the truth from both internal and external experiences, including incidents.

To engage and empower employees in safety, establish clear safety protocols, provide comprehensive training, encourage open communication about safety concerns, involve employees in safety planning, recognize and reward safety-conscious behavior, and continuously solicit feedback to improve safety measures collaboratively.

If PSM measures are properly implemented, operational excellence will certainly be observed. The KPI goals and targets listed below are intended to track and manage the implementation and effectiveness of PSM measures, such as. - Total Count of Process Safety Incidents-PSIC - Tier 1, 0% is target per year - Tier 2, 0% is target per year - Tier 3 LOPC max. 1 incident per month - RCA campaign rate is 5% out of reported Tier 3 events - No. Of MOC audits - No. Of Permit to work Inspected - No of over due safety-critical elements Inspection work orders - No. Of unexpected shutdowns - Production target are set to all disciplines - Process Safety Total Incident Rate-PSTIR - Process Safety Incident Severity Rate-PSISR

I think to measure and Improve for create a safety culture you can follow this four points: 1. Establish clear safety policies and procedures that are applicable to all staff and visitors. 2. Provide appropriate training to make sure everyone understands the safety policies and procedures. 3. Regularly inspect and monitor the work environment to ensure safety standards are being met. 4. Reward employees who demonstrate safety-first behavior. This encourages a positive safety culture.

I agree, but we need to focus on leading measures as well. We need to proactively identify high severity risks and put measures to reduce the likelihood if them occurring. At lower level, a system to report near misses, unsafe behavior and unsafe conditions should be set up. An example is a simple phone App where all staff can use their phones to report anything unsafe. All items reported should then be analyzed and addressed at the earliest opportunity. Employees should then be rewarded/recognized for such initiatives.

In opinion Here are some key points to help foster a safe environment: 1. Encourage open dialogue and collaboration between employees and management. This will help build trust and understanding within the workplace. 2. Create an atmosphere where employees feel comfortable to report any safety concerns or issues. 3. Develop a system of checks and balances to ensure safety protocols are being followed. 4. Invest in training and education for staff to ensure they are aware of any safety risks and have the necessary skills to manage them. 5. Foster a culture of continuous learning and improvement. Encourage employees to share their experiences and learn from each other.

Never be afraid to pick other peoples brains, ask questions and learn from others. Always listen to your workforce and involve them in the process of working safely. In any group of people there will be people who have done this work before and have done it safer/quicker.

Learning from experience entails keeping an eye on information from both internal and external sources and acting upon it. Even with the greatest of intentions, operations don't always go according to plan, therefore businesses need to be prepared to use their own and other people's mistakes as a chance to enhance their process safety efforts. The following are the most economical methods to gain experience: - Utilize best practices to maximize the efficiency of the resources at available to you. - Address the shortcomings brought to light by internal incidents and near-misses. - Put the knowledge gained from other organizations to learn and Implement.

This is essential, you cannot solve a problem if you don't understand, and are honest with yourself about having the problem. A common understanding of the problem amongst subject matter experts and peers, particularly, across an industry, means we can be very confident in that collective wisdom, being able to solve it. What I have found helpful, is looking harder within your own organisation for opportunities to share knowledge and expertise. You will no doubt have subject matter expertise on your major hazards across your operations, engage and use them, before seeking consultants. Establish major hazard communities of practice and working groups to solve clearly defined problem statements with an authorised and funded project.

Según la experiencia obtenida en la confección de matices de riesgos críticos y planes de acción de emergencia , que dicho sea de paso tuvo excelentes resultados en la seguridad de los trabajadores de la empresa, es muy importante recalcar la colaboración que cada uno tuvo en este trabajo de un año intenso , excelente el concepto de trabajo colaborativo y pensamiento crítico.

We extensively discuss safety, training programs, celebrate safety weeks, and have a separate safety team. Despite these efforts, 3 workers still lose their lives daily in Indian factories (based on govt. data; actual nos. may vary). Having spent about a year and a half on the shop floor, I believe that cultivating a safety culture is the most challenging aspect. In an environment where everyone is focused on production targets, regardless of safety training sessions, the prevailing message in the minds of workers and supervisors is to ensure they meet their targets, often resorting to shortcuts. Another significant issue is overconfidence among seasoned workers. It’s not just about preaching a ‘safety first’ culture but truly living it.

Establishing a safety culture in high-risk industries involves clear communication, training programs, regular safety audits, and fostering a mindset that prioritizes safety over productivity. Encourage reporting of near misses, provide ongoing safety education, and lead by example to instill a commitment to safety throughout the organization.

When organisation promote & cultivate safety culture in its employees It not only make them aware about the risks involved but also motivate & inculcate safety in daily activities thus ensuring safe work practices & safe work environment

With a decade of leadership experience, I've seen how discipline, awareness, and responsibility underpin a robust safety culture. Discipline ensures consistent adherence to safety protocols, creating a dependable environment. Heightened awareness fosters a proactive approach, empowering teams to identify risks early. Responsibility instills a sense of ownership, encouraging individuals to prioritize safety and hold themselves and others accountable. Integrating these values has been pivotal in fortifying a resilient safety culture, ensuring lasting protection for everyone involved.

Safety leadership is a management approach that prioritizes employee safety in the workplace. It involves establishing and implementing policies, procedures, and regulations that ensure the well-being of workers. At its core, safety leadership is about creating a culture of safety within an organization. It means fostering an environment where employees are encouraged to speak up about hazards or unsafe practices without fear of reprisal. Again here the carrot & stick, work extremely well.

Mentioned points in the article are spot on; however, there is one element that is so important: "Employee Motivation." It is crucial that organizations are well aware of what is driving employee motivation at a certain time, and this can be very dynamic. There are certain parameters that are fixed and mandatory, such as "trust & respect." Others might be dynamic with respect to time as well as person to person. At times, the driving factor can be salary, while others might require new learning opportunities. Some might look for work-life balance, while others might be looking for challenging tasks. Line managers and leadership must closely observe to keep employees motivated externally, & then the journey must end at internal motivation.

To build on all of the points above, particularly engaging people in real hazard control, I recently used deep dive analysis of internal and external incident data to build simple bowties of the Top 10 fatal risk scenarios. We used these to consult with operational leaders, and experienced workers at our sites, then tested actual controls with them in the field, when and where the risks occurred. The scenarios and causes were specific and real, so rang true with people, strengthening ownership. Consulting to refine the bowtie, made it a “co-designed” process, (risk owners and workers helped drive what we tested), making it tangible and sensible to them. A coaching / assisting approach gained currency and was greatly appreciated.

MUDAR HÁBITOS! Umas das melhores maneira de tratar de segurança, muitos dos acidentes ocorrem por estamos no automático, exemplo são as atividades rotineiras qual nos executamos quase sempre, a probabilidade de acontecer um acidente e muito maior pelo fato de muitas das vezes agir no automático, a necessidade de quebrar esses hábitos são tão importantes quanto investir em cursos e treinamentos específicos.

In addition to all above valuable points , its important to schedule a formal audit programs on safety performance to gauge the existing status and coach the team to continuously improve the safety culture, also need to have schedule for attaining CBT fro all employees on main safety procedure to continuously refresh their knowledge and keep them aware of the major elements on the critical site procedures

I am very interested to see Wayne Rielly's simple bowties of the Top 10 fatal risk scenarios he mentioned. I worked with SHELL and we had similar simple bowties that represent generic system. Therefore, it would be great to see that!!!