A new policy paper launched by the Inter-Institutional Group on Health and Safety (IIG) outlines steps to promote good engineering design, and will help to cut the death, injury and disease in Britain’s workplaces and enhance public health.
In 2012-13, nearly 150 people were killed at work in Great Britain, and an estimated 175, 000 were seriously injured. The IIG argues that good engineering can make a significant contribution to preventing this, by designing in health and safety in the conception stage of engineering and construction projects.
High profile projects cited in the policy paper, such as the London Olympics Velodrome, are exemplars of safely designed engineering.
The IIG wants the UK to do more to embrace good engineering and design as the foundation of all major industrial projects. The group argues that it needs to be at the heart of socially responsible business and government, and a solution to health and safety risk management challenges.
Richard Jones, head of policy and public affairs at IOSH, chaired the working group behind the policy paper, which was launched at a parliamentary reception at Westminster in December organised by IOSH.
He said: “The impact of failures in health and safety across all sectors in the UK are very considerable, in both human and financial terms.
“But engineering can deliver many of the solutions for keeping work safe, healthy, profitable and sustainable. There needs to be a greater appreciation of the business case for the early adoption of engineering solutions in occupational safety and health and the huge potential benefits to the economy and society.”
The business case for engineering in health and safety outlines key steps for engineers, managers and the Government.
A more detailed article on the IIG’s new policy paper is featured in the Interface section of SHP’s February issue.
In this episode of the Safety & Health Podcast, ‘Burnout, stress and being human’, Heather Beach is joined by Stacy Thomson to discuss burnout, perfectionism and how to deal with burnout as an individual, as management and as an organisation.
We provide an insight on how to tackle burnout and why mental health is such a taboo subject, particularly in the workplace.
