Classes of Fire

Depending on the country you are in, there are slightly different categorizations of fire, .e.g. its slightly different for USA from UK & Europe. Here will examine the USA's OSHA classifications.

In OSHA, fires can be divided into five classes:

• Class A: These are fires involving flammable solids, e.g. wood, cloth, rubber, paper, and some types of plastics. An example of this type of fire would be a campsite fire.
• Class B: These are fires involving flammable liquids or liquefiable solids, e.g. petrol, oil, paint and also some waxes & plastics, but not cooking fats or oils.

• Class C: Class C fire involves energized electrical equipment. Such as motors, transformers and appliances. Remove the power and the class C fire becomes one of the other classes of fire. 

• Class D: These are fires involving combustible metals, e.g. sodium, magnesium, and potassium.
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• Class K: These are fires involving cooking fats and oils such as animals fats and vegetable fats. The high temperature of these types of fats and oil when on fire far exceeds that of other flammable liquids which means that normal fire extinguishers should not be used.

Note:

The only difference in U.K (HSE) classification of fire is that "Class C" is meant for Flammable Gases only and Fires of Electrical origin are mentioned under separate "Class E" which in case of USA (OSHA) is "Class C" (as seen above). 

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What is Fire and how it works?-Fire Hazard

Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the chemical process of combustion (exothermic), releasing heat, light and various other substances.

Basic Principle:

Fire triangle

For a fire to start or an explosion to occur, there are three elements that have to be present to a complete a Fire triangle:

1) Oxygen - This exists in surrounding air (21%)
2) Fuel - This may be in form of solid, liquid or gas
3) Heat - Acts as a source of ignition (minimum temperature to start a fire)

When oxygen mixes with fuel and there's a spark or other sources of ignition, a fire will start.

Following are the sources of each element:

Sources of fuel:  flammable liquids (such as petrol, kerosin oil, paint, adhesives, solvents), wood, paper, card plastic, foam, rubber flammable gases and dusts such as saw dust.

Sources of heat: naked flames, cigarettes and matches, hot processes (grinding,cooking), heaters, lighting equipment and friction.

Sources of oxygen: air in atmosphere (8-16% is required for combustion), oxidizing materials (bleaches) and oxygen stored in cylinders.

Removing any one of these elements will prevent or put out a fire.
Workplaces fires may cause many people to suffer from burns each year and some prove fatal. Fires injure and kill people through:

> heat and flames
> smoke, which suffocate or poison them
> or by collapse of structure, buildings.

How to Extinguish a Fire ?

From fire triangle we know that all three elements have to be present in order to start or continue a fire.
So, fire hazard can be controlled in three ways;
1) Starvation - ending of fuel
2) Smothering - cutting off oxygen supply
3) Cooling - reducing the temperature

 Hope you've find this useful. Keep tuned for further information about fire hazards! spread the knowledge.

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Risk Controls - Measures and Methods at workplace

How do we decide on which risk control measures to use?

During risk assessment (step-3), to help decide on a risk control, there's an order or hierarchy of risk control which we utilize and are as follows:

1. Eliminating the hazard.
2. Reducing the hazard (Substitute)
3. Preventing the people from coming into contact with hazard (Engineering Controls).
4. Administrative controls (Safe system of Work)
5. Personal protective equipment.

1. Eliminating the hazard
The most effective method of controlling the risk is to completely eliminate the hazard,
One way to do this is to replace something hazardous with something that removed the hazard completely. So, instead of unloading a lorry-load of heavy gravel bags by hand, you'd use a crane to lift bags off instead, eliminating need for manual handling.

The rest of the controls focus on reducing the risk to acceptable level.

2. Reducing the hazard (Substitute)
The next preferred option in controlling risk is to reduce the hazard. This can be done by either reducing amount. Such as instead of carrying a box of photocopier paper, which holds five reams, carry one or two reams at a time.
Or, a hazard can be reduced by substituting it with less hazardous solution such as using alternative paint with less harmful substances.

3. Preventing the people from coming into contact with hazard (Engineering Controls)
These control measures rely on preventing people from coming into contact with the hazard by:

a.) Putting a distance between people and hazard.
Such as, keeping chemicals in remote location on site to prevent people coming into contact with it.
other examples nclude keeping people away from noisy machinery and automated processing.

b.) Enclosing the hazard
Such as place guarding around the dangerous parts of the machinery to prevent operators coming into contact with them.
Other examples include putting an enclosure around noisy machine or carrying out all painting in a painting bay.

4. Administrative controls (Safe system of Work)
SSoW includes safe work procedures, permits to work and safety rules. These all detail how activities should be carried out to minimize risk effectively.
A good example of this sis specifying that a job in noisy environment is done in rotation by two or three people so that each person's exposure to noise is limited.

Workers wearing protective clothing and equipment

5. Personal protective equipment.
Using personal protective equipment and clothing such as googles, respiratory protection, gloves and hard hats- can prevent harm to people if they come into contact with hazard, Its success always relies upon people using it. So it should not be considered as first choice for control measure, except in exceptional circumstances.


Note:

You may be wondering when you've done enough in terms of reducing risk.
Well, generally what you need to to is to reduce the risks 'so far as is reasonably practicable'.
This means if the cost- in terms of time, effort, money or inconvenience- associated with risk control outweighs the benefits of risk reduction, then its not reasonably practicable to use that risk control.

Hope you've find it helpful. Kindly ask questions in comment section.

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What is Risk Matrix? and what is its role in controlling Workplace risk?

Risk Matrix is a commonly used risk assessment tool for evaluating and estimating Risk Level. Based upon which, necessary actions are taken such as, if the activity is rating above acceptable levels then the necessary improvement should be done or immediately stop the work activity until it can be made safe to work.

(A 5x5 risk matrix is shown above.)

So for example;
A person is working at height (Cleaning windows) is using ladder without any fall protection during windy weather. So based on scenario we estimate that likelihood of falling from the ladder would b '4' and since the consequence of fall could b very serious or fatal so we can assign the consequence as '5'. 
As we discussed perviously that, 

Risk=likelihood x consequence. 

                                               So,   Risk= 4 x 5 ="20" 

Now looking at the risk matrix (5x5 Matrix), it tells us that activity is very high risk and the condition need to be made safe to continue working else a serious accident might happen.

Note:

You can use 5 point scale (5x5 Matrix) to estimate likelihood and consequence with Five descriptions for likelihood and Five for consequence .
So the likelihood can be ranked as:
1) Very unlikely
2) Unlikely
3) Fairly likely
4) Likely
5) Very likely

and, Consequence would be ranked as:
1) Insignificant- no injury
2) Minor- injuries needing first aid
3) Moderate- absence upto three days
4) Major- more than three days absence
5) Catastrophic- death

Also, the type of Risk Matrix used, depends upon the nature of industry. Such as for office environment 3x3 matrix is used. If its industrial activity or a factory then 5x5 matrix. And if its a hazardous complex like oil refinery or nuclear plant then 7x7 or even 10x10 matrix is used.

Remember, higher the matrix category, more will be the accuracy.

Hope this article was helpful. share your thoughts or question below.

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Types of Risk Assessment in Safety-HSE

According to OSHA four basic types of risk assessment should be carried out in workplace

1- Baseline risk assessment 
2- Generic risk assessment
3- Continuous risk assessment
4- Specialized risk assessment 

1- Baseline risk assessment
This is the initial assessment of risk in a workplace. It is a broad assessment and includes all activities taking place on site. A baseline HIRA (Hazard Identfication and Risk Analysis) is done to establish a risk profile and is used to prioritise action programmes for issue-based risk assessments.

2- Generic risk assessment
This risk assessment is used where the same type of task is carried out at different workplaces in the same way (e.g. risk assessments of a number of warehouses storing similar goods). To do a generic risk assessment, perform a baseline risk assessment and then use this for similar work activities that involve comparable risks.

3- Continuous risk assessment
The continuous risk assessment is an informal risk assessment performed on an on-going basis in the workplace. It's usually performed by a supervisor who'll observe employees performing their tasks as part of his daily responsibility. From this observation the risk related to the specific performance of the task is assessed and the supervisor will stop the employee from continuing the task should it present too high a risk.

4- Specialized risk assessment 
In the field of HIRA there are several methods available for determining specific risks associated to each individual workplace. These models each have a specific application and are used to achieve specific objectives. 

Once you’ve decided on which risk assessment to perform, you’ll need to decide which model you’ll employ. In the field of hazard identification and risk assessment there are several methods available for determining risk in the workplace. These models each have a specific application and you’ll use them to achieve specific objectives.

Note:

As for Risk Analysis their are only two types which are;

1. Qualitative Risk  prioritizes the identified project risks using a pre-defined rating scale. Risks will be scored based on their probability or likelihood of occurring and the impact on project objectives should they occur.

2. Quantitative Risk assigns a projected value(usually this value is stated in terms of cost or time) to the risks that have already being ranked by the previous process 'perform qualitative risk analysis'. 

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Risk Assessment procedure in Health and Safety

What is risk assessment?

Risk assessment is a careful examination of anything in your workplace that could cause people to suffer injury or ill-health while they're at work.
It doesn't have to be complicated, whats important is that you concentrate on significant hazards which could result in serious harm or affect a number of people.

How to conduct risk assessments?

According to HSE(Health & Safety Executive), here's how to conduct risk assessment in steps:
Step 1: Identify the hazards
Step 2- Decide on Who might b harmed and how
Step 3- Evaluate the risk and decide on control measures 
Step 4- Record your significant findings.
Step 5- Regularly Review your risk assessment

Step 1: Identify the hazards

In order to identify hazards you need to understand the difference between a ‘hazard’ and ‘risk’. A hazard is ‘something with the potential to cause harm’ and a risk is ‘the likelihood of that potential harm being realised’.
Hazards can be identified by using a number of different techniques such as walking round the workplace, or asking your employees.

Step 2: Decide who might be harmed and how

Once you have identified a number of hazards you need to understand who might be harmed and how, such as ‘people working in the warehouse’, or members of the public.

(A "4x4" Risk Matrix for evaluating risk severity )

Step 3: Evaluate the risks and decide on control measures

After identifying the hazards  and  deciding who might be harmed and how you are then required to protect the people from harm.
Basically For This you''ll need to evaluate how serious each risk is, which can be determined using "Risk Matrix" approach.

Step 4: Record your findings

Your findings should be written down it’s a legal requirement where there are 5 or more employees; and by recording the findings it shows that you have identified the hazards, 
decided who could be harmed and how, and also shows how you plan to eliminate the risks and hazards.

Step 5: Review your assessment and update as and when necessary

You should never forget that few workplaces stay the same and as a result this risk assessment should be reviewed and updated when required.




Hope this post has given you more insight into risk assessments,  please feel free to discuss this information or post more specific information below.

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Common Safety and Health Hazards in Workplace

What are the common hazards in workplace?
Well there are many different types of hazards, depending upon nature of work activities and type of industry. But Hazards generally fall into six broad groups.

1.  Mechanical/Electrical- e.g, slip, trip and falls, moving machinery, electrical equipment.
2. Physical- e.g, noise, radiation, light, vibration.
3. Chemical- e.g, corrosive, poisons, harmful dust.
4. Biological- e.g, Household waste, bacteria, viruses, parasites.
5. Environmental- e.g, exhaust fumes and gases, landslide.
6. Organisational/psychological- e.g, fatigue, violence, bullying.

Identify hazard in present Office scenario from following list

Here are some common workplace hazards;

> Computer workstation- Eye strain, back injuries and ULDs
> Vehicles and Transport- Collision and crushing with vehicles
> Lightning- Poor lightning, too bright or dark 
> Bullying- Criticism of competent staff, blocking promotions
> Getting n and out- Heavy doors, upon opening door leading to stairway
> Temperature- Too hot or too cold
> Housekeeping- undity areas can lead to hazardous events
> Heights- Serious injury or even death
> Slips and trips- Broken bones or bleeding
> Impact- from flying or falling objects
> Electricity- electric shock, electric burns
> Aggression and violence- Verbal abuse, threats and physical attacks.
> Fire- Burns, structure collapse, 
> Noise and Vibration- White finger, carpel tunnel syndrome
> Stress- psychological and emotional effects
> Manual Handling-  Musculoskeletal disorders
> Chemicals and harmful substances- Corrosive, poisonous, carcinogens 

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Hazard and Risk Definition and Meaning

When referring to Hazard in Occupational Safety and Health, the most commonly used definition is;
"Anything or any action that has potential to cause harm and or illness."
For example; Electricity and Working at Height are hazards.

Similarly, when referring to a Risk in Occupational Safety and Health, commonly used definition is;

"Risk is the likelihood that a person may be harmed or suffers adverse health effects if exposed to a hazard."
For Example; Electric Shock and Fall from height are risk.

But specifically risk can also be defined as;
"Risk is the combination of the likelihood of hazardous event occurring and the consequence of that event."
                                              Risk= likelihood x Consequence

A person is at Risk of Fall and Electrical hazard 

Note:

>Hazardous Event means when someone or something interacts with the hazard and harm results.

>Likelihood means the Chance that hazardous event will occur whereas Consequence means the Outcome of the hazardous event.

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Health and Safety Definition and Meaning

Health can be defined as "Protection of bodies and minds of people from illness resulting from materials, processes or procedures used in the workplace." It means we enjoy freedom from disease or infirmity.

Safety is the feeling of security which means we can work without fear of danger or injury.
It can be defined as "The condition of being protected from or unlikely to cause danger or injury".

Welfare is the provision of facilities for the well being of workers. Welfare facilities may include provision of first aid station, clean drinking water, food, rest room and sanitation facilities.

Note:
The borderline between health and safety is ill-defined and the two terms are normally used together to indicate the concern for the physical and mental well being of the individual at the place of work.

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Importance of Health & Safety at Workplace

If we look at ILO statistics, there are more than 270 million accidents and 160 million occupational diseases each year. About two million people die every year from occupational accidents and occupational diseases .Nearly 4% of worlds gross domestic product is lost each year through the cost of injury, death, absence etc.

Now just think about serious accident happening at your organisation. Think about the injured workers, their personal cost, pain and suffering and the effect on their families. Workers may have long hospital stays and may never be able to work again.
If its shown that the accident happened because of failure to manage health and safety risk in the organisation, the regulatory body may take action, which may lead to prosecution, fines, imprisonment and even injury compensation claim from injured person, alongside other direct and indirect costs.

Consequently there are three main reasons to maintain and promote health and safety:

Moral: Its not acceptable for workers to suffer injury and ill health as a result of doing their job. Because the society expects that everyone person go to the work for earning and not on the consequence of ill health or injury. So, demonstrating that the organisation cares about staff safety and health will lead to a happier and more protective workforce.

Legal: The law requires responsible people in organisation to assess reasonably foreseeable risk from the company activities and to put in place control measures that will reduce the risk- so far as is reasonably practicable.after all its the companies that create the risks.

Economic:
In case of accident at workplace can lead to both direct and indirect cost which may or may not be insured at all. Also a reputation as a health and safety conscious employer can also open doors for gaining new business and retaining staff.

Hence, looking after Health and Safety matters makes a good business sense. 

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