May
06
The term Lean Production was popularized by Womack et al. to name a Japanese production system that had been developed by the automaker Toyota Motor Company several years after the Second World War. The Toyota Production System (TPS) was inspired by Ford’s mass production system, but deeply deviated from it to suit the socioeconomic reality in Japan …
Apr
21
What Is a Safety System?
No matter how much traditional safety “stuff” you do, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have a functional safety system. Without such a system, however, safety results are largely dependent on luck and good intentions. This is not a strategy for safety success.
Webster tells us that a system is “a …
Apr
07
In the first article of this series, “Reflections on Safety Barriers”, we discussed some general principles of safety barriers and proposed a wide operational definition. The second article, “Assessment of Safety Barriers”, described one possible way of doing a hazard and safety barrier assessment, including a practical example. In the third and, for now, final …
Mar
11
Barrier assessment in practice – an example
In the first part if this trilogy, Reflections on Safety Barriers, we argued that focus on safety barriers is one way to deal with some of the shortcomings of traditional risk assessments. We further talked about general principles and posed a wide operational definition and discussed some misunderstandings. …
Mar
04
The Case for Leading Indicators
Why do so many organizations continue to take a reactive approach to safety? Why is it so hard to maintain safety as a priority? Why do supervisors and managers who truly care about safety behave in ways that contradict their values? Remarkably, how we measure safety is a primary root …
Feb
24
What are near misses? The disputed territory between lagging and leading indicators.
It seems that everyone wants to claim near misses for their cause. That should be good news – near misses present valuable opportunities to learn and improve. Unfortunately, sensible discussion on near misses can all too often degenerate into a debate about …
Feb
17
This is the first article in a series of three articles dealing with safety barriers. The first part of this ‘trilogy’ will deal with some general reflections on safety barriers and barrier assessment. The second part will discuss a practical method and example of how this can be done. Thirdly we will discuss some possibilities …
Feb
04
What do Brad Pitt, Nate Silver, and Alex Trebek have to do with predicting and preventing workplace injuries?
Well, if you’ve been to the movies, read a book, or watched TV recently, it is likely that you’ve been exposed to predictive analytics.
Jan
05
Adapted from “Creating & Maintaining a Practical Based Safety Culture©”
We’ve all heard it. Most of us have said it and some of us have even said it more than once- “safety starts at the top!” It’s not a difficult concept to understand. If the management team at the top of the organization doesn’t …
Dec
13
Using Your Inspection Data to Improve Safety Performance through a Leading Indicator Safety Incentives Program
What comes to mind when you hear the term “safety incentives”? Pizza parties held after 30 days worked without an injury? Prizes raffled off after six weeks without a lost-time incident? Maybe you’ve even run an incentives program in the …
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