ANSI/AIHA/ASSE Z10-2012: An overview of the Occupational Health & Safety Management Systems Standard
  

 This article explores how the safety-related systems encourage employees’ process in business. The U.S. national congress for the first time used a national census to organize all ANSI approval on a new standard titled Health and Safety Management Systems (OHSMS). In 2005 ANSI/AIHA Z10 was considered a major development. The secretariat formed a committee to review Z10. Shortly after approval, secretariat was transferred to ASSE.
    It is expected that occupational injuries and illnesses will reduced as employers make changes. The SH&E professionals should contact gap analysis to compare existing safety programs that will identify differences and improve the plan. The Z10 committee consisted of more than 40 safety professionals to craft the 2012 version of the Z10. The intent of the Z10 was to present management system requirements when applied correctly would achieve safety and health benefits and favorable effect on productivity. The standard is built on the well-known plan-do-check-act (PDCA).
    Throughout all sections of Z10, processes of continual improvement in place to ensure that: continual improvement in place to ensure that: 
•    Hazards are identified and evaluated;
•    Risks are assessed and prioritized; 
•    Management system deviancies and opportunities for improvement are identified and addressed
•    Risk elimination, reduction or control measures are taken to ensure that acceptable risk levels are attained. In relation to this theme, the standards are defined as: hazard exposure, risk, probability, severity, risk assessment. Z10 is a management system standard, not a specifications standard. It provides senior management with a well-conceived concept and action outline for a safety and health management strategy. By having an effective management strategy is not easy, because most employers need to have a process in place to fully identify and prevent or control hazards risks and associated changes.

 

Work Cited ANSI/AIHA/ASSE. (2012). American national standard for occupational health and safety management systems (ANSI/AIHA/ASSE Z10-2012): Fairfax, VA: AIHA; Des Plaines, Il.ASSE.