Page 131 - IGC BOOK

• It also verifies records like maintenance, training, statutory examination.

Health and Safety inspection involves the examination of the workplace, equipment, and
processes to identify hazards and therefore to put right controls in place to mitigate the hazards.

Inspection is concerned with hazard identification whereas auditing is linked to the systems that
manage the prevention and control of hazards.

Audit Stages

Pre-Audit Preparations

The following should be defined prior to audit:

• The scope of the audit
• The area of the audit
• The extent of the audit
• Personnel requirements
• Gathering information

Competence of the Auditors

The auditor must be familiar with work practices as well as audit techniques, he also must be
able to interpret standards and have up to date information with standards. Auditors must be
trained on the audit skills which enables them to carry out audits effectively.

Time and Resources

Audits are in depth analysis of compliance with standards, it should not be treated lightly. The
audit planning process itself a time-consuming part. Gathering evidence and verifying
documents also a lengthy process which consume large amount of time. Employer should not
put pressure on the auditor to get the work done in short period of time, the employer must
allocate sufficient time to complete the task.

During the Audit

Auditors use three methods to gather information

• Physical observation – of the workplace, equipment, processes, and behaviour.
• Interviewing people – who needs to be interviewed, a meeting schedule must be planned and
organised.
• Verifying documents – risk assessments, internal audit reports, HSE policy, training records
etc.

ENSIGN | Unit IG1 – Element 4 – Health and Safety Monitoring and Measuring 19