Adam Voak, IoSCM Australia
Accidents and incidents can be costly to a business. They often have indirect and direct impacts on reputation, business continuity and the organisational bottom line. These costs both direct and indirect coupled with social losses and the potential for damage and human suffering as a result of an incident leads to a direct need to managing the economic impacts with a view to safety.
Safety management systems bring with them benefits, not only in terms of mitigating risks but also enhancing operational efficiency. They enable the organisation to reduce confusion and frustration arising from multiple definitions and opinion. A good system can benefit an organisation in a number of ways these include:
- boost the efficiency and effectiveness
- less accidents means less loss which means more profit
- can enhance a company’s business plan via more strategic approaches to risk mitigation
Essentially by embracing a systematic approach to safety it enables the organisation to reduce the overall burden of administrative costs. Which in turn can often lead to a reduction in insurance and liability costs, increased positive employee involvement, greater regulatory compliance, reduced costs associated with illness and injury and a by promulgating a continued positive cultural message.
The introduction of Safety Management Systems the world over have already brought many benefits, not only in terms of safety but also by providing greater clarity to organisations. Which in many cases have resulted in enhanced operational efficiency and effectiveness for the organisation. Companies are beginning to recognise that there are great benefits in having a SMS these include:
- the long-term savings achieved through implementing improvements, reducing hazards and improving operational systems;
- improvements in employee productivity and equipment performance; and
- the savings of avoiding fines associated with non?compliance
Overall a good SMS reduces costs, reduces risks, creates competitive advantage and improves overall operational efficiency.