18 Oct Safety and Plant Maintenance
If it ain’t broke, don’t touch it or fix it!
If you manage the mechanical production or service processes of your business on this outdated cliché, then I suggest that you rethink this approach to the maintenance of your plant, buildings and equipment. This not only has the potential cost of downtime for your business if something was to go bang during your processing, but also for your responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.
What are these responsibilities?
Without limiting subsection (1) or (2), a PCBU must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, –
- the provision and maintenance of a work environment that is without risks to health and safety; and
- the provision and maintenance of safe plant and structures; and
- the provision and maintenance of safe systems of work; and
- the safe use, handling, and storage of plant, substances, and structures; and
- the provision of adequate facilities for the welfare at work of workers in carrying out work for the business or undertaking, including ensuring access to those facilities; and
- the provision of any information, training, instruction, or supervision that is necessary to protect all persons from risks to their health and safety arising from work carried out as part of the conduct of the business or undertaking; and
- that the health of workers and the conditions at the workplace are monitored for the purpose of preventing injury or illness of workers arising from the conduct of the business or undertaking.
These responsibilities were set out in the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992, but now becomes even more important with the redefining of responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.
WorkSafe NZ implications with plant maintenance
As the old German cliché goes, “The devil lies in the detail”. This is very true when it comes to providing proof of compliance (if you are ever involved in having to provide this proof), especially when it comes to the maintenance of equipment and machinery.
Monitoring
There is also a requirement to monitor the health of workers and the conditions at the workplace, so why not extend this to the programmed or scheduled monitoring of your buildings, plant and equipment using a programme of preventative maintenance? This then leads to the question of knowing when and what to monitor and the recording of this action. To make this process easier to manage, Hasmate can provide you with a recording facility via its asset management module that:
- Provides you with alerts for your maintenance and inspections;
- Allows you to attach any photographs and reports;
- Records any compliance requirements and reminders; and
- Gives you the facility to produce a full profile of the record of the maintenance with one click of a button.
To trial this functionality, please click here and sign up for our free 30 day trial.