Interactive Planning and Occupational Safety - Research Paper Example

Interactive Planning and Occupational Safety Introduction Planning is a complex integration of many practical and strategic means in order to start and sustain an organization whether private or public. It covers various divisions of the business or organizational structure, each with various other concerns that also need to be integrated in a coherent plan depending on goals. Ackoff (4) recommends effective planning, where managers and their teams learn and adapt rapidly to keep pace with change, democratize in order to practice inclusiveness and loyalty among employees, introduce internal market economies to address concerns with regards to work processes, and employ a flexible structure to minimize the need for future restructuring and bigger expenses. Safety planning is one of the most immediate concerns of businesses or organizations that deal with dangerous processes, services or products. Such are the cases of chemical firms that manufacture, store, or use dangerous substances, hardware manufacturers, and other industries. The safety of employees is paramount to the achievement of organizational goals. Such can be said on COPPST Circuitry. It is a global organization with site level units in ten US states, a site in Canada, another in Nigeria, and several in Europe and Asia. The most recent emergency that occurred at one of the US sites of COPSST Circuitry should be considered as a learning opportunity, as well as a time to propose interactive planned improvement to encompass mandated safety standards in the site. In planning for safety, Leeman (14) described four parts of this phase in the planning process the systems analysis, obstruction analysis, reference projections, and reference scenarios. The Occupational Health and Safety Hazard Administration (OSHA) provide an extensive standard and guideline for employers and managers that address the four said parts of the planning process. In COPSST Circuitry, there are three levels of government stakeholders which expect laws to be followed, and these are from the Federal, state government, and at the local levels. The Federal bodies are the Federal Department of Labor (BLS & OSHA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EOCC), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Department of Transportation (DOT), and Department of Homeland Security (DHS). At the state level are Department of Environmental Protection (Air, Water, Soil, Waste, Facility Response Plans, and Emergency Notification), Department of Health and Human Services (Radiation Control Program), State Office of the Fire Marshall (Occupancy and Life Safety Codes), Department of Economic and Community Development, Department of Labor (Workers Comp, Disability, etc.), Department of Public Safety, and the Department of Transportation. And at the local level are Code Compliance Division, Planning and Development Department, and the Water Resource Protection Department. Together with the employers, they play crucial role in the provision of safety in the workplace. Interactive Planning These various levels and agencies of the government all contribute to the mass knowledge and information in the formulation of interactive planning for the organizational operations. Various standards are required by these agencies to be met, with the continuing and safe operations of businesses as end-goal. These include safety of workers at the workplace and structural standards and procedures that ensure safety and environmental requirement compliance are met. However, additional considerations include the welfare and goals of the various stakeholders of COPSST Circuitry. They are the employees, customers, suppliers, distributors, other local businesses, the local community, corporate OHS, other business units, and the overall corporation. All of their needs and requirements pertaining to COPSST Circuitry is considered in interactive planning. Proper communication clarifies these goals, needs, and requirements. Prior to engagement, certain requirements and standards are negotiated between COPPST Circuitry and the expectant stakeholder. Inquiries, letters of intent, introductory information, gathered or researched background information, and regulatory posts all form part of the initial considerations. Most importantly, inter-agency or inter-organizational communication should be a focus where all departments are included in the discussion to ensure that they are not only updated with planned changes but to consider their position, opinion, and possible input in the planning and implementation of safety measures. Upon identification of similar goals and evaluation of the positive result for a business relation, a formal or informal agreement may be reached. Further input between the other stakeholder and COPSST Circuitry commences in order to clarify the expectations on both sides. It is then that a formal and binding agreement is reached. Further action and interaction between the stakeholders will confirm the direction of this relationship and all data and information that are gathered in the process are integrated into the interactive planning process to further improve business operations. Assessment, evaluation, and recommendation for actions become part of the interactive planning process. IT should be regular and continuing to determine timely needs and actions. In the case of COPPST Circuitry, the interactive planning should have been integrated to the business operations. The Emergency Response Team of COPPST Circuitry is expected to be better prepared prior to the emergency situation that occurred. Extensive training and skills development should make each ERT member skilled enough to systematically address an emergency, alone or with assistance. For instance, the regulatory requirement of government agencies mandate organizations the structural capability to deliver as well as possess certain characteristics prior to approval and issuance of permit to operate. These should not only be met but surpassed in consideration of the other dangers that may be present in a manufacturing plant such as COPPST Circuitry. Such is the case for Federal Department of Labor (BLS & OSHA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of Environmental Protection (Air, Water, Soil, Waste, Facility Response Plans, and Emergency Notification), Department of Health and Human Services (Radiation Control Program), State Office of the Fire Marshall (Occupancy and Life Safety Codes), Planning and Development Department, and the Water Resource Protection Department. All these offices require a certain degree of environmental, and workplace standards for safety one would believe the requirements overlap at one point or another. Compliance is a must but there are many organizations that get away with the most basic provisions that barely meet real life operational requirements. COPPST Circuitry can be said to be one organization that barely complied but failed to determine their own safety needs. Interactive Planning to Meet OHSA Requirements Ackoff (48) suggested that for a corporation to endure, each division - from production, marketing, finance, personnel - must work with the others to create an effective system. To implement the OHSA requirements, these must be fully integrated to the work system of the employees. As provided for by Standards 29 CFR, employers are mandated to provide personal protective equipment to employees that are exposed to hazards which at this instance, the Emergency Response Team (ERT) as well as the technicians that operate and handle various equipment in COPPST Circuitry. In addition, the OSHA also mandates employers to conduct proper training on hazards and related matters to employees and impose compliance duty based on standards. Basic specifications of OSHA should be a standard and adopted in all departments at all times (USDL, 1) Again, it should be noted that these are common-sense basic standards that should be practiced in all departments. COPPST Circuitry maintenance should specifically note 1910.22(b)(1) that requires mechanical handling equipment areas to have sufficient safe clearances for aisles, loading docks, doorways, and passage ways. These areas should be kept clear and in good repairs and clear of obstruction that could pose hazard. Likewise, permanent aisles and passageways should be marked. Covers and guardrails should be provided to protect employees from hazards of open pits, tanks, vats and ditches. Various other requirements are provided for in 1910 Occupational Safety and Health Standards that every company should comply with including COPSST Circuitry. However, focus on the COPPST Circuitry event should also be considered such as the CI of ERT missing the alarms. Aside from adopting advanced alarm systems, the ERT team should undergo a more extensive training to sufficiently and skillfully handle the given emergency situation where availability of help may be limited. As much as possible, the ERT should never rely on information or skills from technicians or other workers where emergency situations are concerned. All departments including the maintenance team should include in their regular meetings and reports all occupational hazards that the management should consider. Immediacy of addressing those concerns is tantamount to maintaining a safe work environment. Every employee should be required to report immediately any observed hazard from slippery floors, to gas emissions, malfunction, irregularity of equipment condition, and other alarming incidences within the work place. However, prevention is a priority in OSHA mandate. This portion is especially applicable to COPPST Circuitry as alarm systems and equipment are old and almost obsolete that replacement should have been communicated to higher management at the most immediate period. These are identified as the Life Safety Systems such as fire detection, hazardous gas monitoring (HGM), and emergency response systems. It can be determined that the Emergency Response Team (ERT) of the COPSST Circuitry lacked basic and advanced knowledge and skills to act in an emergency such as the one that occurred in September 12. The incident commander (IC) himself could not properly determine which alarms went off and got confused easily. In addition, in an emergency, appropriate protective gears and equipment for multi-chemical or hazardous gas situation should be available in order to address various hazardous chemicals present in the manufacturing site. One that is fit only for a specific gas will become useless with other effluents or would require another change of outfit or another team entirely. Interactive Planning Outcomes Where interactive planning has been applied, outcomes shall include: Integrated approach towards addressing emergency situations within the company Consolidated plan and response process that would not cause confusion on ERT personnel and their supervisors Timely replacement of Life Safety Systems that will help prevent recurrence of hazardous emergencies Readiness of ERT personnel with their equipment, response actions, as well as communication and coordination process to minimize damage Minimized damages to property and equipment, work output, quality of products, and dangers to workers. Maintenance of confidence among workers. Cooperation between various departments and workers with regards to maintaining safe, healthy, and conducive work environment Continuing operations and minimized absenteeism or filed leaves among employees and management teams Inclusion of an extensive ERT supplies to address other substances or chemical dangers such as the COPPST Circuitry emergency where H2 gear and supply were needed Ensured quality products / output among employees or workers Higher profit. Viewing from the outcomes and the resulting output for every catastrophe and dangers prevented in the workplace, savings, quality output and higher income could be realized. As Ackoff (109) noted, these practices will eventually lead to better economic results. Idealized Design Prevention, as mentioned earlier, integrates the minimized damage result with safe practice. Many organizations would benefit well with the prevention and control of occupational injuries, illnesses, and fatalities and this should be designed in a manner that applies interactive planning with the goal to minimize hazards and risks early on. Prevention through Design or PtD is widely accepted among organizations. The PtD practices evolve over time. But focus remains on the avoidance, elimination and control of hazards and risks at the workplace. After identification of needs, the evaluation and PtD should be incorporated onto the design and construction of work areas, tools, equipment, machinery, substances, and the work environment and process. It will consider the workers’ health and safety, the safest positioning and location of machinery and equipment, possible construction methods, design, and facilities, and presence of the most effective emergency response system. Redesign is usually created, based, driven and sustained at the organizational level, corporate and local, thru joint teams, leadership, assigned roles and responsibilities, processes specific to the site such as that of COPPST Circuitry. Redesigning the system for COPPST Circuitry would need to reconsider the recent mess factors with consideration to external regulatory agencies. It was suggested that a life-cycle assessment will guide engineers and designers towards achieving an improved outcome for PtD that also encompass environmental concerns in a sustainable concept (NIOSH, 2011). The goals of PtD are: “to achieve acceptable risk level; to prevent or reduce occupationally related injuries, illnesses, and fatalities; and to reduce the cost of retrofitting necessary to mitigate hazards and risks that were not sufficiently addressed in the design or redesign processes” (P 4). Various systems and specifications shall depend on the requirement and needs of the organization. For COPPST Circuitry, due to limitation or mess obstruction with its funds and budgeting, a cost-effective design should be considered incorporating existing and working Life Safety Systems with the most immediate need. In reality, extensive training of existing personnel and update of LSS as necessary should be a good starting point. Gaps Means planning is very essential in idealized designing because it identifies the gaps. And this means planning refers to the “working drawings” completed with detailed instruction which primary purpose is to close or reduce the gaps because these were already identified and were given possible solutions before the actual construction of the building. The gaps are of three types: the things to be added; the things to be eliminated; and the things to be changed (Ackoff, p.107). The examples of the first type of gap include such as democratic hierarchy, boilerplate programs for corporate OHS to site level OHS professional and redesign of Fail Safe Monitoring and Emergency Shutdown Systems. Meanwhile, examples for the second type include the following: Command and Control System, and Specialized Internal Resources that cannot compete in an internal economy. And examples for the latter type of gap could include such as the role of OHS professionals, greater employee involvement, training and education, line management involvement in OHS and shifting goods and services between individual sites. Types of Means Since, gaps which involved addition and subtraction are considered as complex actions; several types of means are necessary which include such acts, courses of actions or procedures, practices, processes, projects and programs. The acts refer to ordinary or casual dealings which can be accomplished immediately or quickly. An example of which could include buying a book or software, writing a letter or report, attending a meeting. It could also include the signing of contract or even firing an executive. This is considered important because it is done once, which could change the whole plan, like for example in the case of the latter example (p.108). Meanwhile, the courses of action or procedures are considered as the “systems of actions” because it consists of sets of activities or actions which were carried out gradually in order to acquire a definite or precise result or outcome (p.108). For instance, developing a high-level of health and safety programs would involve sequence of steps from the corporate health before it will be implemented. Practices on the other hand, are set of actions which are taken repeatedly (p.108). An example of these actions could include trainings and performance reviews. Processes are another type of mean, which primarily consists of procedures or methods to be carried out to one thing throughout (p.108). An example of which is the establishment of response procedures especially during emergency cases. Projects are also one of the important types of means because these are courses or systems of continuous actions that are taken in order to acquire the desired outcome of the planning (p.108). An example of this could include redesigning of critical safety system, installing fire detection or HGM system and establishment of emergency response. Likewise, programs are referred to the systems of projects, which usually have longer duration. The primary goal of programs is to produce sets of interacting outcomes (p.108). An example of program could include such systems thinking for OHS, or system implementing democratic hierarchy. Policies are also included in the type of means. This refers to the sets of actions or procedures that serve as guidelines in planning. Example of which could include the compliance of OSHA and ISO 18001 (p.108). Ways of Controlling and Influencing the Future There are two ways of controlling and influencing the future of planning: controlling the causes of uncertainty and controlling the effects of uncertain causes. The former type is also referred to as vertical integration and the latter as the horizontal integration. In most cases organization employ vertical integration because of its advantages. For example, it can control materials which end result would reduced costs and provide greater flexibility in project designs, implementation and scheduling. Meanwhile, the horizontal integration involves the integration of something into a system that precludes a potentially negative effect of an uncontrolled cause (p.110). It specifically aims to prevent possible accidents and risks at the workplace or site. Hence, it employs such precautionary measures and mitigates risk in order to improve the working conditions. An example of which is the shifting the goods and services between individual sites, establishment of supporting mechanisms and safety alliance, improving work performances. Incentives In most cases, incentives are very essential in any work activities. These are usually rewards given to employees or workers because they performed a desired action which contributed to the success of the whole organization. Hence, incentives should be measured according to the amount of input and output (p.114) in order to encourage the employees to work harder and bring the best out of them. Responsiveness Responsiveness actually refers to the ability of an organization to learn and adapt quickly of various techniques in order to effect changes (p.115). In the case of COPSST, they respond with their very serious near miss investigation and plans for change shared with all national and international units. Inducing Cooperation Cooperative relations can be induced by implementing the democratic hierarchy. And this can be achieved by encouraging involvement between staff, front line supervisors, site OHS, corporate OHS, emergency staff, and IC staff. Reducing Conflict Conflict can be reduced through working between all the stakeholders and the old and new safety personnel. Since, they will be a part of something new they will become more focus on redesign. Use of Conflicting Ideas to Generate New Alternatives New alternatives are actually generated when conflict ideas are organized. These include the dialectics and the countermeasures. The main difference of these two is that when competition is not a major factor, dialectics are relevant but, if competition becomes a major factor, countermeasures becomes relevant (p.120). From Efficiency to Effectiveness In order to increase efficiency to effectiveness, an organization must have the knowledge, for example, the workers should be trained on alarms and on proper use of PPE. Effectiveness also requires understanding, for instance, the worker should know how to follow procedures so that the PPE system would be use effectively when explosion hazard occurs. Every error in the worksite should also be corrected. Hence, wisdom is required (p.124) so that when cases such as volatile situation occurs and there’s a need to provide fail-safe methods and the procedures were not adequate, the people could quickly make decisions and not only rely with the one who is responsible of it. Conclusion: Interactive Planning ensures an integrated approach towards management and operations in consideration of all the resources of the organization. Existing facilities, team of workers, managers, and properties of an organization are its strongest assets that should be nurtured and kept safe and working. This will ensure effective teams working at their peak and high quality output. Integrating their safety and wellbeing in the work process should not be perceived as additional requirement of OSHA or other agencies that must be complied with but viewed as an asset improvement and proper maintenance. The cooperation between different departments will spell out positive results within the business system which will add to the development and growth of the organization. Works Cited: Ackoff, Russell. Re-Creating the Corporation: A Design of Organizations for the 21st Century . Oxford University Press, USA (July 29, 1999). Print. Leeman, James E. "Formulating the Mess." GEHS-7240-70 Applying Systems Thinking to EH&S. Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. Scottsdale, 9 September 2011. Lecture 5. Leo, Vic. "A Call to Action Designing the Future at Ford: Systems Thinking Applications." Systems Thinking Applications (1995): Print. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Prevention through Design Standard. NIOSH Science Blog. Accessed from http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/blog/nsb092211_ptd.html October 2011. Web. United States Department of Labor. Occupational Health and Administration. Accessed from http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owasrch.search_form?p_doc_type=STANDARDS&p_toc_level=0&p_keyvalue= October 2011. Web. Read More