WORKPLACE INSPECTION

Purpose:
The purpose of a workplace inspection is to identify hazards that could endanger the health or safety of anyone in the workplace. It can also determine whether established procedures are being followed.

An inspection achieves its purpose by seeking answers to four questions:

Is a hazard or potential hazard present in the workplace? Is any worker or other person exposed or likely to be exposed to the hazard? Has anyone suffered injury or a health effect as a result of this exposure, or is anyone likely to do so? Are established procedures being followed?

An effective inspection is a procedure made up of four stages:

preparation; inspection; review and reporting; follow-up.

Inspection Information
Inspection information is specific information about work / construction processes, hazards and controls that are present in the place to be inspected. This information will help the joint health and safety committee member to concentrate on the things most likely to need attention. Four types of data are important:

 Workplace Layout: What goes on where and when, and what materials are used? Standards: What legal regulations, industry standards and employer rules apply to the processes and equipment used in the work area? Controls: What controls, emergency procedures and protective equipment are used there? Problem Indicators: What concerns have been reported about this area that may indicate potential hazards?

Workplace Layout
The data on workplace layout allows the persons conducting an inspection to visualize the layout of the area and the flow of the CONSTRUCTION proceess or processes carried out.

Standards and Controls

Standards indicate what legal regulations, industry standards or employer rules should be applied in the work area. These standards indicate what controls, if any, are in effect to establish control over known health or safety hazards. These are benchmarks against which the person conducting the inspection can measure what is actually happening in the work area. Where there are differences or deviations, they may indicate the presence of an actual or potential hazard.

Problem Indicators
Problem indicators may be identified from various reports regarding the area to be inspected. They include outstanding issues from previous inspections, first aid reports, accident reports and the reports of complaint investigations. The person doing the inspection should read this information and look for trends or patterns that might indicate a potential hazard to be investigated.

Recording
Everything of significance and everything that prompts a question in the mind of the members should be recorded. Inspection tools such as floor plans, flow charts and checklists are good places to record observations or questions. Observations that dont fit on one of these forms should be recorded separately, if necessary. Careful recording makes the later preparation of the inspection report relatively easy. It also helps to ensure that the report contains a thorough and useful account of the inspection.

Review and Reporting

An inspection should not begin without preparation and it should not end without a report. The Act requires that the joint health and safety committee members report inspection findings to the joint health and safety committee. Before the report can be written, the information from both the preparation and inspection stages must be reviewed and organized.