3.67 Health and safety planning tips.

Planning is one of the most important activities in any Safety Management System. Most incidents can be traced back to inadequate planning, insufficient resources, poor communication, ineffective supervision, or failure to identify hazards. Good planning demonstrates due diligence, supports the General Duty Clause, and forms the foundation of a proactive Safety Case. Remember: safe operations do not happen by accident—they are planned.

“Truth – The safest Job is the one you have thought through”

This page aligns with:

Ontario MOL’s Internal Responsibility System (IRS)
COR 2020 and ISO 45001 principles of planning, consultation, and continuous improvement
Due diligence principles for supervisors and employers under Canadian OHS law

Before Work Starts

Site Survey
Hazard Identification
Weather Assessment
Equipment Selection

During Planning

Roles & Responsibilities
Communications
Supervision
Check Sheets

Before Mobilisation

Resources
Competence
PPE
Emergency Arrangements

During Operations

Monitoring
Change Management
Feedback

Hold Toolbox meetings – Get feedback and support teamwork

A short example:

“Before starting a welding job near flammable material, a supervisor walked the site with the team, identified a hidden hazard, and prevented a near miss. One 5-minute safety check avoided a shutdown.”

Note – it is important to establish a high confidence in a hazard management control measure and to identify what is required to ensure that the management control measure are effective and maintained over time. For ex. if the control measure is “competency” then make sure Job descriptions and training is up to date.

Focus on the worksite to make sure check lists, equipment and supervision is in place. If possible get the site set up a few days in advance, equipment maintained and safety systems in place.

Remember the 80/20 theory that companies often omit the 20% that makes the real difference – like Deep water Horizon which was a Safety management systems failure.

Take into account ‘Human Factors’ An example was when bleeding off the pressure for a pipeline pig trap the procedure mentioned “open the vent valve” but did not emphasize that the vent valve should stay open, hence the operator opened and closed the vent valve as normal practice allowing vapor pressure to build up in the trap.

Team members are better motivated if included – Give all worker the big picture, make them all an essential part of the Program you will be surprised how each team member can contribute to the success of the project and be your eyes and ears.

Do not be afraid to stop work and hold a Toolbox meeting”

Remember – the General Duty Clause – GDC – Legislation only states the minimum H&S Requirements aim for the Optimum

Example – Have essential safety equipment ready and tested for immediate call-off For example we had 44 wells and we purchased 46 wellhead valve assemblies at the project price, the extra 2 wellheads being kept at the factory, tested and ready for immediate call off at short notice. It makes perfect sense to do this for all critical plant safety valves in my experience so you can be assured they are tested, certified and ready to go for immediate use by a competent wellhead manufacturer like Cameron in Stroud, Gloucestershire UK.

Some thoughts and tips too consider when planning works always essential to plan ahead

Appointing an experienced project leader
Identifying long lead items like the budget and program approval.
Using a planning tool to develop a Critical Path (CPA) analysis to identify critical tasks and expected time scales.
Consulting with experts to identify all hazards and implement the best control measures.
Develop a Total safety case. (see section on “The case for a safety case”)
Have a list of approved contractors and qualifications to tender.
Work with the Contracts department to develop contractors tender documents for specialized personnel and equipment. i.e do not just leave it to the Contract dept.
Request your contractors Safety policy and records of safety performance
Obtain “Risk Registers” for the work all the contractors will be contracted to do,
Be involved in new equipment specifications and attend witness factory testing on critical components like Well control panels, wellhead valves and completion sub assemblies
Communicate the program with operational departments and stakeholders
Be aware of other activities that may conflict with yours
Logistics will be a key to success, get them fully on board with the planning
Have a spares list
Put together a Rigging loft to keep all lifting stored equipment in one place on the worksite and fit for purpose
Have a testing equipment locker for test gauges, make up and pressure test manifolds in advance. Flush out all test hoses – hoses classed as pressure Vessels and tagged, take care of them.
Factor in the weather – particularly wind speeds
Signs provide no protection, put up physical barriers and use permit to work systems
Keep PPE separate, clean and accessible.
Gather workers together and Hold toolbox meetings.