The Essay Highlights The SHEM Degree's Importance For Safety Practitioners In The Industrial Sector. (70 Characters)

Assignment - We were asked to choose 5 speakers on the below topics and to produce a reflective writing pertaining the understanding of the 5 Hazardous Industries. I had chosen 5 industries below by Individual subject matter experts from different industries. Overall, i am to expect:

1) Paragraph 1 - Introduction
2) Paragraph 2 to 6 on individual speaker on their individual industry in general
3) Paragraph 3 - Conclusion about the entire journey of the course that i go through and how i feel. (I have also uploaded the guidelines on the reflective writing)

Note : This is my last assignment before i graduate. Reflective writing will be about the understanding and the challenges i experience and i learn from the last Module. 

Skills and Learning Outcomes

Studying for the degree class for SHEM proved to be an important learning experience for me and improve my academic understanding of the subject. This was made possible due to the inclusion of both class based learning module as well as a setup to enable industry work based learning. Such aspects were pivotal in strengthening my career foundation in the role of a Safety and Health Practitioner within the industry (Savery 2015; Nikolova et al. 2014). The legislations, policies and protocols sets up a rigorous framework that ensures the health, safety and welfare of workers in an industrial sector, which is a hallmark of the present industrial sector. The workers safeguarded by such policies and framework are mostly employed in industrial operations, many of which are classified as hazardous (Carayon et al. 2015). The focus of the curriculum included in the SHEM degree and the lessons learnt during the completion of the course provides us with a strong basis that can help us to take the correct decisions, working as a manager in an industrial sector. The learning outcomes, achieved during the completion of the course were applicable either directly or indirectly to various industrial sectors, outlining the functions of Regional Health, Safety & Environmental (HSE) Manager (Aman et al. 2015; Lundgren and McMakin 2018). The course moreover helped me to understand the various duties and mandates that should be taken care of in the context of health, safety and the working environment. I feel certain that through the completion of the course, I was able to develop my professional knowledge and skills, which I would be able to utilize in my professional career to support the health, wellbeing and safety of the industry workers and uphold the policies, laws and frameworks learnt during the course (Glendon et al. 2016).

I enrolled myself in the SHEM course with the expectation to develop skills in the management of an industrial sector. The reason for doing so was supported by my goal to become a knowledgeable, trustworthy, skilled, reliable and efficient manager in the maintenance of health, safety and working environment in the domain of production industries (Walters et al. 2016). Changing the perceptions towards the safety and well being of the employees, fostering environmental conservation and ensuring adherence to the various regulations on health and safety implemented by the government have been by chief aspiration and points of focus. I always looked forward to meet and interact with various other professionals employed in this industry, learning through their experiences, the various challenges inherent in their work as well as their needs and expectations. I also indented to develop my self-reliability and also the ability to take decisions (Qin et al. 2015). Understanding the relationship dynamics between the employee and management was of paramount importance as it helped me fully comprehend the interpersonal skills necessary to develop an effective relationship, which I would be able to implement in my professional work. Therefore, I aimed to inculcate such skills in my repertoire that will help me to manage people with effectiveness and efficiency with the completion of my course (Holt and Allen 2015).

Perceptions towards Safety and Well-being

Completing the modules under SHEM, I was able to gather knowledge about different industries where hazards are a common factor. I was able to identify the different hazards inherent in each of this industry, which further was useful to understand how to manage such hazards. I was able to learn about the hazards in different industries, and strategies to manage them. The key hazardous industries discussed in theis report include:

1. Construction Industry: Which deals with architectural engineering technology to build and design constructions by applying engineering principles.
2. Product Safety Industry: This industry deals with the maintenance and assurance of the safety of the products that is produced in manufacturing units, ensuring that the products does not cause harm or injury to its users or customers, when used as intended.

iii. Education for Hazardous Industry Personnel: This industry deals with educating employees of hazardous industry, on the various strategies to mitigate the hazards and develop knowledge about workplace safety.

1. Offshore industry: This is a diverse group of industries, which can include both offshore oil and gas drilling companies as well as offshore business processes, as such outsourced business units and business centers.
2. Consultancy: This mostly includes personnel who are involved as subject matter experts or specialists who are involved in outstation works, lab tests, and consultation to other businesses or industries.
3. Diving Industry: This involves professional divers, who might be involved in various industries such as research, tourism and recreation, safety management, security and fisheries.

I was also able to develop several new and important skills which have key significance in the development of my professional aptitude and abilities as an SH&M manager. The important skills developed during the course were i) Understanding how to identify workplace hazards (like physical, chemical and biological hazards), ii) Understanding the factors that affect performance of the workers (such as age, health, physical factors, chemical factors, gender, handicap as well as physiological and psychological factors), iii) comprehend human interactions and human behavior, iv) understanding the assessment of workplace safety, health and environment, v) comprehension on how to manage workplace hazards (monitoring, assessing and eliminating  hazards), vi) understanding the guidelines to workplace safety, health and environment and their limits, vii) understanding approaches towards health and safety controls, viii) practice and methods of risk communication, ix) understand strategies to develop health and safety competence (evaluating and improving personal competence), x) Understanding and improving methods of participation of employees, xi) Understanding strategies to develop wellness of workers (encouraging healthy behavior, discouraging unhealthy ones and also control and manage workplace stress), xii) Understanding methods of performance monitoring and reporting, xiii) Understanding the metrics for the measurement of performance (including how to develop the measures, how to use them and how to evaluate the measures), xiv) Develop understanding on how to manage emergencies (including identifying emergencies, planning for emergencies, developing strategies to prevent emergencies, responding to emergencies, and promote recovery from emergencies), xv) Understanding the laws and policies that support workplace health and safety, xvi) Developing an understanding of basic medical concepts related to illness and injury at workplace (Holt and Allen 2015; Qin et al. 2015; Walters et al. 2016; Lundgren and McMakin 2018)

The safety health and environment management course has helped me to understand the various kinds of hazards associated with various industries like the construction, product safety, education, offshore, consultancy and diving industry. 

The potential hazards associated with the construction industry includes falls from height, trench collapse, electric shock along with arc blast, scaffold collapse , failure of the usage of proper personal protective equipments and repetitive motion injuries.  These hazards are mainly caused due to the working conditions associated with the construction industry, such as working in heights, moving construction objects, risks of falling, slipping, tripping, high noise, hand & arm vibration, manual handling of construction materials, collapsing objects, asbestos, airborne dust particles, electrical devices and wiring, corrosive materials used in construction and poor lightning conditions (Malik 2017). The above mentioned hazards are highly dangerous and at times can prove to be fatal for both the employees as well as employers (Bahn 2013). In chief controlling measures that are implemented buy the company in order to ensure protection are excavations, ladders, head protection, rigid scaffolding, appropriate hazard communication, providing effective training to the employees and usage wiring methods. Additional measures that can reduce the risk of accidents and injuries includes training the workers on safety protocols, and safe work practices, implementing policies to maintain safe working procedures, which would ensure everyone followes safe work practices. Such steps can help to develop a safe and health workplace. Furthermore, the workers can be encouraged to participate in safety drills and workplace safety workshops, with a representative selected from the workers, who can act as the safety coordinator among the workforce. Regular inspections and implementing standardize workplace safety and environmental management strategies can also be suggested (Zhang et al. 2015).

Hazards in Different Industries

When it comes to hazards associated with the product safety industry, some of the major hazards include electrical shock or electrically caused fires, hazards from chemical batteries, physical hazards due to mechanical issues like moving parts or sharp edges, thermal hazards resulting in skin burn and finally radiation hazards (Fam, Nikoomaram and Soltanian 2012). While gathering knowledge about the hazards associated with product safety, I understood that majority of accident in the mentioned industry happens due to radiation. This fact also let me understood the importance of risk reduction for ensuring the safety of employees. As a control measure, a hazard-based approach, Hazard Based Safety Engineering (HBSE) has been developed. This approach identifies the energy sources by reviewing the product and its associated schematics and take measurements in order to determine the energy level and identify the source of the hazards. While analyzing the hazards associated with both product safety and construction industry, I understood that dangerous substances and fire hazards are two common hazard themes associated with both the industries.  The hazards associated with dangerous substances can be minimized through the use of protective covering and taking standard precautions requires handling the said materials. Apart from protective dresses, educating workers of the handling procedures, evaluating their training, and developing and effective system to detect and audit the work practice and regularly monitoring the operations are effective measures to ensure the reduction of workplace hazards. Emergency protocols also should be implemented, which can help to support an early response to a hazard (Abbot and Tyler 2017).

The main hazards associated with professionals who are involved in the education in the hazardous industries and varied, and mainly depends n the type of hazardous industry employing the person and where the training is taking place. Most on job training occurs at the production sites, which can place the training at the same hazards as that of a worker, and hence being exposed to the same risks. Such hazards can be minimizing through the same standards of safety associated in that industry and followed by the workers. Other hazards that a trainer or educator in a hazardous industy includes exposure to multiple hazards, if working in various hazardous industries, as well as the risks associated with frequent travelling. Adopting safe and healthy work practices and using personal caution is thus the most effective ways to mitigate or prevent the hazards (Galea 2017).

Offshore Oil and Gas Industries can be a really hazardous place, especially considering the nature of substances involved in the operations. The highly inflammable fuels that are extracted and stored in the Offshore Oil and Gas plants puts it at high risks of fire and explosions. Also, there is a significant amount of environmental hazard associated with such incidents, which causes oil spills and release of smoke. Safety precautions that can reduce the hazards includes fire p[revention measures, emergency procedures to cut the supply of fuels to choke fire, emergency protocols to block fuel lines to prevent leakage such as valves and procedures to extract workers in cases of fire. The workers can also be educated on safe working standards to develop and maintain a safe work environment (Johansen and Rausland 2015). For Offshore business processes, one of the most important hazard is the security of data. Safeguarding the sentitive business information is thus of an utmost importance in this sector.

Important Skills Developed

Business consultancies often have to  work with a large amount of data, which might be sensitive and a business secret. Breach of such data can have significantly negative impact on the business. It is therefore vital for the consultancies to ensure proper security of the data (Pathan 2016). Conducting interviews with the management of several organizations, I understood that companies remain extremely pressurized and continuously struggle to keep their information from the hackers. The most common hazard that affects majority of originations in Consultancy industry is failure to cover cyber security basics. With the enhancement in technology, cyber criminals use a huge amount of vulnerability to hack the organizations as well as their systems (Marrocchi et al. 2016). Data security risk can give rise to major concern like leakage of confidential information about an employee or client or leakage of crucial information about a confidential strategy of the company. The former situation can lead to legal issues resulting in law suit against the company. The later situation, like the former, also has the potential to affect the company adversely by decreasing its competitive advantage in the industry. In order to deal with issue, several organizations have implemented the strategy of providing limited access to confidential data along with high usage of Captcha. Moreover, regular testing of network and more usage of data cloud are two other major risk controls (Kurlick 2012).  Furthermore, security of digital data can be enhanced by using both physical safety as well as digital safety. Physical safety of the data can be ensured by limiting access to the computers or servers storing sensitive data, implementing passwords and biometric readers. Digital safety can be ensured through user access controls, encryptions and security firewalls (Pathan 2016).

In commercial diving, the workers are always exposed to several risks, such as decompression sickness, drowning, hypothermia, oxygen toxicity or gas narcosis and environmental hazards such as being attacked or stung by marine animals. Diving in deep sea waters significantly increases the risks of decompression sickness, if the diver changes depth in the water too fast. It is vital therefore those commercial divers are fully trained in diving, swimming, using oxygen equipments, and are able to follow safety protocols. Protective gears and well as breathing apparatus are the most important equipments which can help to ensure the safety of the drivers under the water. Moreover, these equipments should be thoroughly tested before being used each and every time (Whayne 2018).

I believe the inclusion of a firsthand experience in this domain is a necessity as it helps to amalgamate seamlessly the theoretical and practical approaches of learning, and thus helps to develop and strengthen the foundation of knowledge and expertise in this domain (Kanten et al. 2015; Nisbet and Shucksmith 2017). Through hands on learning experience, I was able to identify the subtle as well as the more pronounced differences between the working processes and hazards in different industries, and how the theoretical knowledge can be differentially utilized in each setting, to support and maintain safety and well being in any organization. Hence, I believe education, knowledge and skills were effectively delivered through the course, and helped in the development of key skills needed to be a Health and Safety manager. However, one thing I might want to add to this learning process would be the study of different possible incidents related to various hazards, how they occur, and how it impacts the workers, organizations/businesses as well as communities, thereby helping us to fully comprehend the gravity of each situation. This can also include case studies of famous workplace incidents, and how they took place (through investigative reports), which would provide the option of comparing the various approaches in hazard management, thus helping to identify their strengths and weaknesses (Nisbet and Shucksmith 2017; Keeley 2015).

Potential Hazards Associated with Construction Industry

I believe that this course provides an essential learning process which is needed for any professional or student aspiring to become a Health and Safety manager or officer. The course is also vital for anyone who would want to be a workplace health and safety consultant or a contractor in this domain. I strongly feel that the course have equipped me with vital understanding of the concepts, approaches and methods applied towards the maintenance of a safe and healthy workplace (Keeley 2015). It also impressed upon me the importance of ensuring the health, safety and well being of the workers, as they are an important asset to the organizations, which imposes a significant responsibility on the employers/contractors towards the same. Moreover, the structured approach towards the delivery of the knowledge also enabled a better and efficient understanding of the subject, and also provided all students to utilize the gained knowledge in real life, thereby testing the ability to use the theoretical understanding into practice. The course helped me understand the expectations of the workers and their communities that the employers have responsibility for their workers, the various legal obligations an employer has towards the same, thereby helping me to fully comprehend the expanse of roles played by a workplace safety and health manager (Reese and Walker 2016).

Even though the design and implementation of the course objectives were executed immaculately, and with great efficiency, I still did face some significant challenges while developing my understanding and expertise on this domain. One of the biggest challenges was to develop the comprehension about the topic within a limited amount of time, in which we had to exhibit an understanding towards both the theoretical as well as practical aspects of the discipline. This was a challenge because a lot of theoretical, conceptual and technical knowledge had to be developed within a relatively limited amount of time. Similarly, to ensure the comprehensive understanding, a lot of learning outcomes were included in the module, which also was a challenge for me. This was because, of the sheer diversity of  theoretical knowledge that had to be developed, such as legal requirements, legislatures, policies and frameworks, medical and health related concepts as well as ethics. This demanded a significant effort to learn and implement the knowledge in practice and also a lot of time. However, due to the efficient planning of the course, such challenges were possible to meet and overcome, and achieve the learning objectives (Nisbet and Shucksmith 2017).

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