Task 1 – Safe Design Standard Operating Procedure
This assessment task requires the development of a Standard Operating Procedure for inclusion of
safety in design. You should refer to the examples (Queensland Urban Utilities and Australian Rail
Track Corporation ATRC) as a basis for the document you produce.
Assume you are engaged by a civil engineering organisation that undertakes civil engineering and
design for public infrastructure works. As part of meeting your obligations under the WHS Act and
Regulations 2011 you are required to prepare a safety report and issue this to the client where the
client is a Person Conducting A Business or Undertaking (PCBU). The aim of this report is to help
prevent possibly future injuries or death by identifying, assessing and eliminating hazards or
potential risks at the design stage. You also have a legal obligation to do this under the legislation,
specifically regulation 295 of the WHS Regulation 2011. You also have an obligation under section
22 of the WHS Act to provide information on how you have designed the structure to be without
risk to health and safety during construction, maintenance, use and demolition to anyone who is
issued with a copy of the design. This information can be incorporated into the safe design report
required under the WHS Regulation. Your standard operating procedure document must ensure
these requirements are met in the designs developed by your organisation.
Observation Checklist
| Observation Criteria | S | NS |
| Advised decision-makers of their duties under WHS laws to manage WHS risks throughout a product’s life cycle | ||
| Sourced and made available to decision-makers the most current information and data on WHS principles, materials, technology and systems that apply to product design | ||
| Advised on methods and tools that can support WHS hazard identification and WHS risk assessment throughout a product’s life cycle | ||
| Identified and addressed learning and development needs of decision makers to manage WHS risks that may arise during a product’s life cycle, including during its design phase | ||
| Advised on consultation with known and/or potential users of the product during the design phase, according to organisational policies and procedures | ||
| Identified situations where specialist and other advisers may be required to support safe design activities | ||
| Advised on selection and implementation of required WHS risk controls in design, based on the hierarchy of control measures | ||
| Advised on documentation requirements relating to decision-making during risk assessment process | ||
| Advised on establishment of a residual WHS risk register and distribution of this information to those involved in downstream or subsequent product life-cycle stages | ||
| Advised on monitoring the design as it evolves, to identify and manage potential WHS hazards that may arise during product life cycle and their associated risks | ||
| Identified and addressed learning and development needs of decision makers in relation to managing design-related WHS risks in a product’s life cycle |
| Observation Criteria | S | NS |
| Supported decision-makers in considering the needs of those using or interacting with product throughout its life cycle | ||
| Facilitated involvement of technical experts as required according to organisational processes and procedures | ||
| Advised on consultation arrangements with required personnel during all phases of design process to identify WHS hazards and control WHS risks that may occur throughout a product’s life cycle | ||
| Advised on communicating residual WHS risks in product to those who will use or interact with the product throughout its life cycle | ||
| Advised decision-makers involved in purchasing and contractual arrangements to include requirements to identify WHS hazards and control WHS risks, and to provide information and data on residual WHS risks as part of procurement process | ||
| Advised on including a requirement to carry out a safe design approach in the design brief or draft specifications | ||
| Considered basic human cognitive and perceptual capabilities and other basic and fundamental factors relevant to the design of human machine interfaces in development of the standard operating procedures (SOP) | ||
| Outlined basic information about relevant psychosocial factors, occupational violence, shift work, repetitive work, awkward postures, lighting, thermal environment and work layout in SOP | ||
| Outlined the basics of anthropometry and biomechanics in SOP |