Guidance on the Elements of OHSAS 18001 Introduction
The areas relating to planning, implementing and checking provides some info on the standard. OHSAS 18001 is very similar in many ways to ISO 14001 though there are differences in direction and that is extremely important. It means that the management system methodology and specification is the same (so if you understand ISO 14001 then it will be easier to understand how OHSAS works) but the actual things that are under control are different.
Management of health and safety is different to ISO14001 but there are similar interfaces. Safety data sheets, emergency planning, accidents that could have an environmental and Health & Safety slant are examples. However, OHSAS does diverge from environmental and requires documented procedures to be in place that ensure the safe operation of equipment, processes and activities.
BS8800
This national standard for health and safety provides a similar approach to managing health and safety and could be equated to the days of BS7750 (1992 to 1996). Again the standard is similar to OHSAS, but with slight differences of emphasis (mainly in the mixing up of the familiar elements of the MS approach if one looks at the HS(G) 65 model). Remove that from the equation and the actual management system is very similar to existing frameworks.
Integrated Management System
The next 10 years or so will be taken up with the development of a framework for an Integrated Management System. It is quite likely that OHSAS and ISO 14001 will become closely integrated, with other companies linking together their QMS system to create the BUSINESS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM of the future. All management requirements would then be auditable and included within one system to streamline and utilise efficiencies that are not available to 3 different management systems.
Training Requirements
Health and Safety is a very well established discipline and maybe because H&S is transposed into corporate culture through the enactment of laws and legislation, the integration of this legal framework with the management system culture has, up to now, been sitting firmly in the back seat.
Many delegates from multi-national companies that have attended environmental courses with Marsden International (and our partners) have been asked about this, and largely the answer is one of "yes we are aware of the issue but we are only just starting to address the integration problem".
It's seen to be a big mountain to climb and when the same delegates are asked about integrated management system auditing, they seem to recoil in horror at the prospect. SOME organizations are embracing the integration culture and are prepared to invest time and effort in streamlining their management systems to allow for the integrated audit.
