Unit 5: Safety Management of Electrical Systems:

Principles of Safety Management, Management Safety Policy, Safety organization, safety

Auditing, Motivation to managers, supervisors, employees.

Principles of Safety Management

1. Establish and observe a written corporate safety policy.

2. Create an independent safety review process.
3. Identify and evaluate the severity and foreseeability of product hazards.
4. Conduct a design review assessing the risk of injury by considering the hazards, the
environment, and foreseeable use.
5. First attempt to eliminate hazards. If not possible, then reduce the opportunity for
injury by guarding against the hazards.
6. Warn users of product dangers and motivate them to avoid injury.
7. Promote only the safe use of a product.
8. Maintain safety-related records during the useful life of the product.
9. Continuously monitor safety performance of the product in the hands of users.
10. Promptly notify product users and institute recall procedures where necessary to
substantially reduce or eliminate injury.

1. Establish and observe a written corporate safety policy.

A written corporate safety policy is the ultimate responsibility of top management. The
document is designed to detail executive commitment, both statutory and voluntary, to the
concept of system safety; a before-the-fact management system designed to insure the
production and distribution of reasonably safe products. Oral direction such as "safety is
everyone's responsibility" provides inadequate instructions to the organization. The policy
must describe management commitment to clear identification of the responsible
corporate units for the tasks of hazard identification, risk assessment and injury control.
The primary goal of a written safety policy is the creation of a management system to
substantially reduce of eliminate injury to consumers.

2. Create an independent safety review process.

The independence of the safety function within the management structure is crucial to
successful analysis of potential product dangers. Corporate Safety Director is an advisory
role, with authority to interact with technical functions such as product design,
engineering, epidemiology, human factors, communications and legal. The safety
manager must be able to order safety-related analyses by the various technical divisions
and have the authority to integrate the results for presentation directly to top management
for decisions on injury control. It is critical that the safety management office be
independent of production and distribution. Giving a production manager primary
responsibility for safety will divide his or her loyalties and compromise injury control
before management review. The safety director often will preside over a safety review
board is compromised of members from the technical divisions. 1

Electrical Safety & Standards | Prepared by: Prof. Kunal A. Onkar

3. Identify and evaluate the severity and foreseeability of product hazards.

A hazard is the inherent capability of a product to do harm. It is most often the result of
an energy transfer or release, with such transfer creating impact to the product user.
Appropriate analysis must include a focus on whether the hazard is latent to the user
while foreseeable to the producer and the impact on certain vulnerable population groups.
The vast majority of homeowners in rural areas do not understand that pilot outage in an
LP gas water heater can create dangerous conditions when the safety valve fails to
operate. Turning on a light bulb or attempting to relight the pilot can create a catastrophic
explosion. Some hay balers can entangle a farmer's arm faster than they can let go of a
piece of string caught in the feed rollers. Children cannot recognize strangulation hazards
in and around cribs. Manufacturers and distributors must proceed with extra caution
where the hazard is not immediately apparent to the user.

4. Conduct a design review assessing the risk of injury by considering the hazards,
the environment, and foreseeable use.

A risk of injury is the opportunity for a specific set of conditions to create harm: Under
what circumstances can the user be injured? An examination of the identified hazards, the
environment in which it is intended to be used and foreseeable use and misuse of the
product by the user population must be considered. An all terrain vehicle, or ATV, can be
an inherently unstable 300-pound machine that can throw a rider. Crushing injuries can
occur in addition to the impact by overturning. ATVs are intended to be used in
uncontrolled, wilderness environments, such as mountainous paths, sand dunes and over
obstacles. By creating a recreational, sometimes uninhibited setting, ATV riders can
foreseeable use the product by going fast, racing with friends, or even by partaking in
alcoholic beverages. While not always appropriate behavior to a safety analyst, it is
foreseeable that these situations will occur and must be considered to effect reasonable
safeguards to prevent injury.

5. First attempt to eliminate hazards. If not possible, then reduce the opportunity for
injury by guarding against the hazards.

By eliminating a specific hazard, certain injury cannot occur. For many years cribs were
designed with finials, or cornerposts, extending above the top edge of the crib. Children
would become entangled on the finials through clothing or other articles and strangle.
Redesigning the crib with a smooth top edge with no protrusions eliminates the danger.
But in other cases this is often not possible. Gasoline creates toxic and explosive fumes. It
is not possible to eliminate them without destroying its usefulness. Gasoline can however,
be stored in an appropriate canister to prevent the fumes from leaking into a water heater
closet in the garage causing an explosion and severe burn injuries. A power mower
employs a steel blade rotating at over 200 mph, but lawn mowers can incorporate devices
to shut down the blade when the operator releases the controls and can shield user access
to the rotating blades.

6. Warn users of product dangers and motivate them to avoid injury. 2

In addition to elimination of hazards, product warnings and instructions must assist the
user to avoid dangers, including those that remain after thorough attempts to eliminate or
guard. An explicit warning including a signal word, statement of the hazard, appropriate

Electrical Safety & Standards | Prepared by: Prof. Kunal A. Onkar

behavior and a description of the consequences of the danger are required. A pictogram
illustrating the consequences is often needed to communicate the danger, especially to
those who cannot read the words. This communication of the consequences is particularly
important in motivating the user to avoid the danger. Ten years ago, the CPSC required a
warning on certain power lawn mowers signaling Danger, to keep hands and feet away
from the mower, and included a pictogram depicting a blade cutting a hand. A warning
not to go in the kitchen without knowing why may be quickly disobeyed. Informing the
chef not to enter the kitchen because of a fire spreading from the oven will often cause
him or her to go elsewhere to eat.

7. Promote only the safe use of a product.

Advertising and product promotion sometimes subtly and deceptively promote consumer
misuse. Motorcycles promoting speeds up to 150 mph certainly encourage users to go
fast, if not to the limit. Some chain saw manufacturers for years promoted the "macho"
image to outdoorsmen. When they began distributing smaller, homeowner saws to the
general population, injuries more than doubled. In the early years of sales, ATVs were
advertised as safe, family fun. Print advertisements said the ATVs could traverse "an
astonishing array of terrain", over "rocks, boulders and fallen logs" and "where some
animals can't go." Small, instantly removed disclaimers are insufficient to warn users of
the dangers of actions depicted in advertisements. Positive statements providing safe use
instructions with sufficeint frequency to influence behavior is necessary to reinforce safe
activity.

8. Maintain safety-related records during the useful life of the product.

An effective product safety system requires records in sufficient detail to allow for timely
detection of safety hazards and trends, and for tracing product defects in assembly,
components and overall design. Records necessary to provide sufficient data for
management decisions include safety-related product changes, test results, consumer
complaints, product liability lawsuits, location of products within the distribution chain,
government injury data, and engineering reports. An integral part of the corporate safety
policy is establishment of a system of records and a directive concerning retention of
those documents. A document destruction policy of three years concerning a product with
a useful life of seven years deprives the organization for the opportunity to protect
product users from danger.

9. Continuously monitor the safety performance of the product in the hands of users.

Once a manufacturer/distributor has concluded that a product is reasonably safe based on

pre-production review and analysis, the product is ready for distribution to users.
Feedback from product users is critical to determining whether subsequent corrective
action is necessary. Government injury data such as the National Electronic Injury
Surveillance System (NEISS) is a primary resource for management safety data. A major
producer of furnace valves distributed approximately 15,000 valves to furnace
manufacturers. Reports from the field indicated the seals were not properly chlorinated, 3
thus allowing the gasket to tear and leak gas. The company notified the Consumer
Product Safety Commission under section 15(b) that the product possibly "contained a
defect which could create a substantial product hazard". An appropriate corrective action

Electrical Safety & Standards | Prepared by: Prof. Kunal A. Onkar

 plan including the recall of the valve and notification to consumers was taken to protect
consumers from the dangers of gas explosions.

10. Promptly notify product users and institute recall procedures where necessary to
substantially reduce or eliminate injury.

Upon discovery of a product hazard after distribution to the public, immediate

notifications of the danger and quick steps to protect users from injury are critical. Time
is of the essence. Knowledgeable product users can help reduce both injuries and claims.
Efficient recall procedures can remove hazardous products from the stream of commerce.
A number of years ago a major producer and distributor of telephones in the United States
discovered that the transformers used to power the lighted dial on certain phones would
catch fire. Four incidents of minor property damage were reported. Although no injuries
were reported, the company embarked on a major notification and recall campaign which
included "bill stuffers" to tens of millions of consumers of the fire damage and offered a
free replacement, along with compensation for damage caused by the transformer. Few
additional incidents were reported

Rights and duties

The responsibilities of governments, employers and workers should be seen as
complementary and mutually reinforcing in the common task of promoting occupational
safety and health to the greatest extent possible within the constraints of national conditions
and practice.

Workers’ rights
The cooperation of workers within the enterprise is vital for the prevention of occupational
accidents and diseases. The enterprise’s safety and health policy should therefore encourage
workers and their representatives to play this essential role: specifically, it should ensure that
they are given adequate information on measures taken by the employer to secure
occupational safety and health, appropriate training in occupational safety and health, and the
opportunity to enquire into and be consulted by the employer on all aspects of occupational
safety and health associated with their work.

The policy should outline the duty of individual workers to cooperate in implementing the
OSH policy within the enterprise. In particular, workers have a duty to:
• take reasonable care for their own safety and that of other persons who may be
affected by their acts or omissions;
• comply with instructions given for their own safety and health, and those of
others, and with safety and health procedures;
• use safety devices and protective equipment correctly (and not render them
inoperative);
• report promptly to their immediate supervisor any situation which they have
reason to believe could present a hazard and which they cannot themselves
correct;
• report any accident or injury to health which arises in the course of or in
connection with work. 4
Workers also have certain basic rights in respect of occupational safety and health, and these
should be reflected in the enterprise’s policy. In particular, workers have the right to remove
themselves from danger, and to refuse to carry out or continue work which they have

Electrical Safety & Standards | Prepared by: Prof. Kunal A. Onkar

reasonable justification to believe presents an imminent and serious threat to their life or
health. They should be protected from unforeseen consequences of their actions. In addition,
workers should be able to:
• request and obtain, where there is cause for concern on safety and health grounds,
inspections and investigations to be conducted by the employer and the competent authority;
• know about workplace hazards that may affect their health or safety;
• obtain information relevant to their health or safety, held by the employer or the competent
authority; and
• Collectively select safety and health representatives.

Access to better information is a prime condition for significant, positive contributions by

workers and their representatives to occupational hazard control. The enterprise policy should
make sure that workers are able to obtain any necessary assistance in this regard from their
trade union organizations, which have a legitimate claim to be involved in anything that
concerns the protection of the life and health of their members.

Employers’ responsibilities
The safety and health policy should reflect the responsibility of employers to
provide a safe and healthy working environment. The measures that need to
be taken will vary depending on the branch of economic activity and the type
of work performed; in general, however, employers should:
 provide and maintain workplaces, machinery and equipment, and use work methods,
which are as safe and without risk to health as is reasonably practicable.
 ensure that, so far as reasonably practicable, chemical, physical and biological
substances and agents under their control are without risk to health when appropriate
measures of protection are taken;
 give the necessary instructions and training to managers and staff, taking provide
adequate supervision of work, of work practices, and of the application and use of
occupational safety and health measures;
 institute organizational arrangements regarding OSH adapted to the size of the
undertaking and the nature of its activities;
 provide adequate personal protective clothing and equipment without cost to the
worker, when hazards cannot be otherwise prevented or controlled;
 ensure that work organization, particularly with respect to hours of work and rest
breaks, does not adversely affect the safety and health of workers;
 take all reasonable and practicable measures to eliminate excessive physical and
mental fatigue;
 provide, where necessary, for measures to deal with emergencies and accidents,
including adequate first-aid arrangements;
 undertake studies and research or otherwise keep abreast of the scientific and
technical knowledge necessary to comply with the obligations listed above;
 cooperate with other employers in improving occupational safety and health. account
of the functions and capacities of different categories of workers.

Governments’ duties 5
Governments are responsible for drawing up occupational safety and health policies and
making sure that they are implemented. Policies will be reflected in legislation, and
legislation must be enforced. But legislation cannot cover all workplace risks, and it may also

Electrical Safety & Standards | Prepared by: Prof. Kunal A. Onkar

be advisable to address occupational safety and health issues by means of collective
agreements reached between the social partners. Policies are more likely to be supported and
implemented if employers and workers, through their respective organizations, have had a
hand in drawing them up. This is regardless of whether they are in the form of laws,
regulations, codes or collective agreements.

The competent authority should issue and periodically review regulations or codes of
practice; instigate research to identify hazards and to find ways of overcoming them; provide
information and advice to employers and workers; and take specific measures to avoid
catastrophes where potential risks are high.

The occupational safety and health policy should include provisions for the establishment,
operation and progressive extension of occupational health services. The competent authority
should supervise and advise on the implementation of a workers’ health surveillance system,
which should be linked with programmes to prevent accident and disease and to protect and
promote workers’ health at both enterprise and national levels. The information provided by
surveillance will show whether occupational safety and health standards are being
implemented, and where more needs to be done to safeguard workers.
A concise statement that encapsulates the main purposes of occupational health is the
definition provided by the joint ILO/WHO Committee. As the definition indicates, the main
focus in occupational health is on three different objectives
 the maintenance and promotion of workers’ health and working capacity;
 the improvement of work and working conditions so that they are conducive to safety
and health; and
 the development of work organizations and preventive safety and health cultures in a
direction that supports safety and health at work. Such development also promotes a
positive social climate and enhances the smooth operation and possibly also the
productivity of working enterprises. The term “culture” in this context means an
environment reflecting the value systems adopted by the undertaking concerned. Such
a culture is reflected in practice in the managerial systems, personnel policy,
principles for participation, training policies and quality management of the
undertaking.

The OSH management cycle

Electrical Safety & Standards | Prepared by: Prof. Kunal A. Onkar

Motivation to managers, supervisors, employees.
It is the heart and mind drive a human to achieve goal who is full of confidence, courage,
and motivation. The ideas and motivating thoughts play an important role in this regard. The
inspiring thoughts appeal human mind for motivation. This is one of the important factors to
design and conduct safety motivation programmes.
It is very much essential to bring to notice of worker’s mind that accident cause harm to
them and any accident prevention action is in their interest only. It is required to motivate
workers to work safely and without accident. To reduce accidents some thoughts may be
developed based on experience and need of time and situation.

Need of Motivation:
Motivation includes education, participation and training, inspiration, aspiration,
communication. These factors are most essential to achieve a desired goal. All human
activities have a driving force which are to be refined, rectified, channelled, shaped, or
directed as per human need. Motivation helps to minimise the human errors, unsafe acts, or
omissions, and it promotes safety. The motivation for safety is an important factor as other
efforts does not help much. The motivation is necessary to mould the people to achieve their
goals speedily but safely.
Todays present problem is not of lack of knowledge of safety, but real problem is of
implementation of knowledge at workplace. This can be the lack of self-motivation, lack of
communication and motivation. Human opinion, reaction or views are equally important
implementation of the safety. Direct communication and motivation are key to implement the
safety laws.
Numbers of accidents, incidents, loss time, loss of property and production and productivity
can be reduced by motivation of employers, employees trade unions.

Following factors are to be improved for motivation and safe attitude building:
1. Lack of effective job training.
2. Incompetent, untrained supervisors.
3. Lack of clarity in company policies and procedures including safety policies.
4. Departments at odds with one another.
5. Display of favouritism.
6. Inattention to grievances.
7. Poor working conditions.
8. Political promotions or favour.

Motivation for Safe Attitude:

1. Self-preservation (free of personal injury).
2. Personal and material gain (reward).
3. Loyalty (desire to co-operate).
4. Responsibility (recognition of obligation).
5. Pride (self-satisfaction and desire for praise).
6. Conformation (fear of being thought different from others).
7. Rivalry(desire to compete).
8. Leadership (desire to be outstanding).
7
Role of Safety Management in Motivation:
Safety Management, Supervisors and Safety Department are most important for motivation.
1. The induction training for new workers to include safety instruction, hazards, and control
measures in industry to build confidence.

Electrical Safety & Standards | Prepared by: Prof. Kunal A. Onkar

2. The induction training to include safety tools and equipment to be used, safety work
permit system, hazards of raw materials and processes, safe operating procedures,
interpretation of MSDS, labels, rules of transportation, loading and unloading, signs &
signals and role of the workers in firefighting and operation of on-site Emergency Plan.
3. The induction training to include Safety & Health policy, Environment policy and
Quality policy, It should be explained with their objectives and benefits the interest of
organization be explained to bring belongingness and togetherness.
4. The procedure and policy to encourage workers to participate in safety committee, safety
suggestions and all safety programmes.
5. All accidents case studies are to be discussed and explained at all levels by analysing the
different roles in preventing such accidents.
6. Organisation to build team spirit and competitiveness which will induct group
motivation.
7. Supervisors to praise the workers, take sufficient work place rounds to watch all workers
to guide them if any unsafe practice is noticed.
8. As per Factory act and rules for workers proper attention to be paid for basic needs of
Health, Safety and Welfare facilities.
9. Any kind of exploitation to be avoided like paying less wages less than even minimum
prescribed by law, not paying according to his qualification and experience or even as per
their reasonable living standard, not paying overtime wages for extra work, instructing
regularly to work 12 hours instead of 8 hours in a shift, depriving of holidays, treating
unequally among equals, partiality in giving benefits, not implementing any legal order in
favour of workers and indirect harassment to leave job etc.
10. Top management to take timely decision as per recommendation of supervisors to give
increment, promotion, and other monetary benefits to the workers.
11. It is good practice to have job rotation or job enrichment as a technique of motivation. It
ensures proper job distribution, job simplification and job satisfaction.
12. To improve productivity and profit management to give opportunity of advancement for
R&D work, new product development, new safety devices.
13. Management to consider delegation of more powers to the deserving workers.
14. Top and middle management to give flexibility, love, affection, sympathy and required
respect to workers as bureaucratic or dictatorial behaviour retards motivation.
15. Workers annual performance appraisal report should not be written with any bias or by
misusing the power as this will certainly de-motivate the worker. Management to provide
guidance how to improve performance and It should be transparent with opportunity for
justification for not meeting any target.

Electrical Safety & Standards | Prepared by: Prof. Kunal A. Onkar