Hazard and Risk identification process for the ABC Company

Describe about the Hazard and Risk Identification Management.

This essay is about the knowledge of the hazard and risk identification process and its application in the ABC company scenario. The essay is divided into five sections and a conclusion. The first section discuses the legislation and compliance requirements relevant to the ABC company, specifically those relating to Safety Data Sheets and inventories. The second part discuses the hazards inherent in the situation experienced in ABC Company while the third section discuses the risk assessment procedures that should be undertaken by the company in details. The fourth and fifth parts give a description of the tools that could be used to assess the risks and risk causes in the company and a range of prioritized risk controls that could be put in place.

Hazard and Risk identification process for the ABC Company

The legislation and compliance requirements relating to Safety Data Sheets and inventories of the ABC Company

ABC Chemicals is a distributor of chemicals and therefore the company is required to comply with the legislation relating to Safety Data Sheets and inventories (SDS). Safety and Data Sheet and inventories is a document that compiles the records on the chemical, physical and toxicological properties of the elements and offering suggestions for handling, keeping and disposing. Additionally, first aid and emergency procedures are generally outlined in the document. The regulations are meant to offer important information required by users to shield them from potentially hazardous substances that may be related to the product. The employees should not be restricted to access the Safety Data Sheets and Inventories.

Some of the legislation requirements which ABC Chemicals need to comply to may include the name of the supplier, with the telephone number and address, and the date that the SDS was documented or amended. Sometimes the limits of exposure and data explaining toxicity may undergo modification. Therefore a regular review of the SDS needs to be done to ensure an updated information. The numbers of the phone are provided to enable the users contact the suppliers for any addition information.  

Another requirement is the chemical properties of the product. Chemicals that are hazardous should be recognized and their synonyms written down. Most ingredients used for products that are mixtures should also be identified (Schultz, 2004). Besides chemical properties, physical properties should also be documented. The physical properties may include information such as boiling point, molecular weight and the point at which it melts. Additionally, health hazards associated with the product should be documented. Documenting health hazards will ensure listing of both chronic and acute dangers to health. The point of entry of the hazardous chemical is also described and carcinogens that may be present are discussed in detail.

The legislation and compliance requirements relating to Safety Data Sheets and inventories of the ABC Company

Another important factor that should be considered in the documentation is the procedures for storage and handling of the product. Individual protective equipment and roper measures of control are identified and listed. First aid and emergency techniques are also a significant section in the SDS since recommendations for first aid and procedures used during fighting fire are included. Measures to be taken if the product spills are as well recommended. Finally, guidelines for appropriate disposal of waste products should be very well listed. The users should be directed to dispose of the wastes appropriately. Correct disposal of wastes will ensure the neighborhoods are not negatively affected by the activities of the company.

Various health hazards are associated with ABC Chemicals with reference to the surrounding areas, the premise itself, and the methods employed by the employees. One of the hazards is the chemical separation into smaller containers. This procedure is done manually which may spill into the hands of the workers thereby causing a health risk since the chemicals contain acids and corrosives. The company should provide the workers with better protective gears or employ a machine that will be able to do the decanting process without the direct involvement of the workers.

The method used in cleaning the spills of the company is a potential hazard. Since the chemicals decanted are very dangerous majorly corrosives, acids and solvents, the spills should be cleaned in a more appropriate way to prevent the workers from being affected. Wiping the spills with a rag may cause corrosion of the hands since the chemicals are harsh to the skin. The waste management of ABC Chemicals is another hazard. The method used to dispose the rags used for cleaning spills is dangerous. Acids and corrosives do not decompose and therefore should not be disposed with other wastes. When the waste contractor finally disposes off the wastes, the acids will lead to contamination of soil and water hence posing health risks to plants and people using water (Steelman and McCaffrey, 2012). The method used to dispose the used drums is additionally not appropriate. The drums have traces of the chemicals that can affect individuals and hence storing them openly next to a fence is improper.

Due to limited equipment needed for emergency, the workers are at a great risk in case of uncertainties such as fire. The workers equally have not been given any training regarding emergencies and in handling the chemicals with caution. Lack of training on how to handle chemicals and how to manage emergencies is a hazard (Chen and Tseng, 2012). Additionally, the company has no emergency exit plan, which poses serious consequences in case of a fire break out. The location of the company, which is near the facility of the aged and the day care, is not recommended due to the dangerous waste products and poor waste management. The institution should be located in a secluded area. The overgrown dry grass paddock may cause a fire hazard since the field is next to the fence where the used drums are stored. Fire may be caused when the traces of the acids and corrosives in the drums finally find their way to the field of the dry grass.

The hazards inherent in the situation experienced in ABC Company

The ABC Company should undertake risk assessment in order to identify latent health risks related to exposure to the harmful products such as acids. Assessment of risks is an approach done methodically to examine risks linked to exposure to impending or known agents that are toxic. Professionals have acquired essential skills to identify, evaluate, manage, and communicate risks (Soprano and Caputo, 2006). For ABC Chemicals, the following risk assessment procedures should be undertaken by the company to ensure risks are managed.

The first assessment is the identification of the hazards where the company discovers all the situations and everything that causes the harm. The hazards may be from the products such as corrosives and equipment at the work place, from the physical environment of the work place, how tasks are executed at work and work management such as waste management of the company. To identify the hazards, the company may observe how duties are performed, may consult with the workers of any health issue experienced in the process of work, and by analysis of any records of incidents at the work place. Additionally, evaluation of advice about the risks and hazards pertinent to the company like any information given by the manufacturer of a particular substance may be done. The second step is dose-response assessment. Dose –response assessment determines the relationship between the degree of exposure, which is the dose, and the outcome on the environment and humans.  ABC Chemicals should be able to carry out a survey in the surrounding area to determine the level to which the society and the environment have been affected due to the exposure to the chemicals.

The third assessment is exposure assessment in which potential exposure of chemicals to the environment and the society is evaluated from the manufacture phase, supply, and utility of the substance, disposal and finally the recycle phase. ABC Chemicals should evaluate if the society around are potentially exposed to the chemicals and employ risk control methods. The fourth assessment is the characterization of the risk whereby estimation of the risk is done by putting together the effects and exposure information. The risk characterization phase involves estimation, interpretation, and reporting of risks and relates an ecological point of view hence promoting transparent, apparent, reasonable, and dependable characterizations of risk (Corvellec, 2010). The risk characterization strategies lay emphasis that the boundary between managers of risk, risk assessors, and parties that are interested is crucial for determining that the assessment results can be applied to support a decision by the management.

The risk assessment procedures that should be undertaken by the ABC Company

One of the tools that can be used by the ABC Company to evaluate its risks is the risk assessment matrix (Aven, 2012). This tool is based on the likelihood or probability of an anticipated risk taking place and the consequences thereafter. The consequences are evaluated upon the backdrop of severity of the anticipated risks, and can be categorized as moderate, low, and high risk. High risks require immediate action owing to the potential damage that may result in the event of delayed action (Sarlin, 2016). The probability feedback is useful in mitigating the risk in the current scenario and in future.

Prioritized Risk Controls that could be used in the Company

There are ranges of prioritized risk controls that can be put in place in ABC Chemicals. The methods of controlling risks are graded from the uppermost reliability and protection level to the lowest. This method is known as risk control hierarchy. The institution must work through the order of hierarchy and possibly implement risk controls that are high in the order.

The highest level of control of the risk is the elimination method. In elimination, the hazard is completely removed from the working area. This measure is the most effective and should always be considered before any other control measure (Chu and Zhang, 2014). The second measure is substitution. The process involves replacing the hazard with better work practice or work practice that is less hazardous such as employing better cleaning methods of spilled acids or corrosives and proper disposal of the used cleaning materials.  

The third measure is isolation in which separation of practices that are potential hazards from people is done. For example, the ABC Chemicals can move further away from the surrounding environment, which is mainly occupied, by the elderly and babies who have weak immunity and may develop complications due to the hazards. The fourth measure is engineering controls where physical measures of controls are employed to avoid risks such as injury. For instance, the ABC Chemicals may use equipment that will aid in the separation of the chemicals rather than using workers who are at risks of corrosion of the skin caused by spilled chemicals.

The fifth measure is the administrative control of risks whereby the work procedures are designed to minimize exposure to a hazard. This measure should only be considered if the other higher measures cannot be employed. The final measure, which is the last choice, is the personal protective equipment (PPE). These include gloves, protective eyewear, and face masks. The potential hazard is never changed by this measure but only serves temporarily. In some instances, the risk control measures are combined and implemented to offer practical and reasonable protection of the highest level. In the selection of a combined risk control measure, caution has to be taken to ensure no new risks are introduced as a result.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the ABC Chemicals is an environmental risk and proper measurements should be put in place to ensure safety of the children at the day care and the nursing home for the elderly. Plans by the local council to build a community centre should also be considered by the institution and invent proper and practicable ways of disposing the drums to prevent any incident of fire hazard to the dry grass field. Alternatively, the institution may consider acquiring another land, further away from the society where they can continue with the business without posing further health hazards. Another recommendation to the company is to protect the welfare of the workers by training them on how to respond to emergencies.

References

Aven, T. (2012). Foundational Issues in Risk Assessment and Risk Management. Risk Analysis, 32(10), pp.1647-1656.

Chen, C. and Tseng, C. (2012). Default risk-based probabilistic decision model for risk management and control. Nat Hazards, 63(2), pp.659-671.

Chu, S. and Zhang, Y. (2014). Markov decision processes with iterated coherent risk measures.International Journal of Control, pp.1-8.

Corvellec, H. (2010). Organizational Risk as it Derives from What Managers Value: A Practice-Based Approach to Risk Assessment. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 18(3), pp.145-154.

Sarlin, P. (2016). Computational Tools for Systemic Risk Identification and Assessment. Intelligent Systems in Accounting, Finance and Management, 23(1-2), pp.3-5.

Schultz, S. (2004). Material Safety Data Sheets: Evolution and Current Concerns. Synergist, 15(3), p.32.

Soprano, A. and Caputo, F. (2006). Maintenance Scheduling in Risk Assessment Procedures. KEM, 324-325, pp.559-562.

Steelman, T. and McCaffrey, S. (2012). Best practices in risk and crisis communication: Implications for natural hazards management. Nat Hazards, 65(1), pp.683-705.