HSE Tools: the 12 Tools the Working HSE Uses Daily

The planning: the risk assessment, the JSA

The planning tools are the ones that run before the task. The risk assessment matrix is the base — the 5x5, the likelihood, the consequence, the score, and the control. The matrix is the method, and the method is the own tool.

The JSA (the job safety analysis) is the task-based tool: the step (the break-the-task-into-the-steps), the hazard (the identify-the-hazard-per-step), and the control (the decide-the-control-per-step). The bowtie is the risk visual — the event in the middle, the threat on the left, the consequence on the right, and the barrier in between. The three are the planning, and the planning is the prevention.

The measure: the gas detector, the noise dosimeter

The measure tools are the ones that measure the exposure. The gas detector (the 4-gas) is the O2 (the 19.5–23.5%), the LEL (the 0–100%, the below 10%), the CO (the 0–30 ppm), and the H2S (the 0–10 ppm). The gas detector is the confined space — the entry is the controlled one.

The noise dosimeter is the 8-hour TWA and the dBA — the hearing loss is the avoided one. The lux meter is the light (the 500 lux, the office, the task), and the anemometer is the air (the wind, the spray, the direction). The four are the measure, and the measure is the data.

The control: the PTW, the LOTO, the PPE

The control tools are the ones that control the high-risk. The permit to work (the PTW) is the confined space, the hot work, the electrical, and the work at height. The PTW is the authorisation — the high-risk is the controlled one, and the controlled one is the accident avoided.

The LOTO (the lockout-tagout) is the energy isolation: the electrical, the mechanical, and the hydraulic — the lock, the tag, and the try-out. The LOTO is the maintenance safe, and the maintenance safe is the electrocution avoided. The PPE is the last line — the helmet, the eye, the hand, the foot, the respiratory, and the harness. The three are the control.

The record: the incident reporting, the KPI

The record tools are the ones that record the data. The incident reporting is the near-miss and the incident — the 5-Why, the root cause, and the corrective action. The incident reporting is the lesson, and the lesson is the system improved.

The KPI dashboard is the leading and the lagging: the leading (the training, the observation, the near-miss rate) and the lagging (the TRIR, the LTIFR, the fatality). The safety observation card is the worker report — the hazard, the near-miss, and the good practice. The three are the record, and the record is the improvement.

The online: the working tools and the calculator

The online tools are the working calculators. The HSE toolkit is the risk assessment matrix (the 5x5, the score), the noise exposure estimator (the 8-hour TWA, the 90 dBA), and the permit to work checklist (the confined space, the hot work). The toolkit is the free, the working, and the no-sign-up.

The resources are the templates: the risk assessment, the JSA, the PTW, and the COSHH. The templates are the fill-in-the-blank — the structure that the HSE fills with the site. The online tools are the 12 in the working form — the calculator that runs, and the template that fills.