In step 7 you will:

• Realise value of continual improvement
  
• Establish repeat process

Quality Thinking

Continuous improvement may sound daunting. Yet many businesses have found from quality systems that improvements can be made continuously provided the right system elements are in place - particularly the role of participation of all staff. continual improvement can start with the most obvious targets, then once the system is up and running, there will be many more opportunities.

Accident prevention differs from the requirements of environmental management and other quality systems. Most accident preventions require you to assess the risks and do something to control them. Once the legal safety requirements have been satisfied that is all you have to do - you do not have to improve continuously. Bring accident prevention into the quality system and you continuously improve the safety of your employees.

Quality systems are based on statistical process control. This controls variations from an agreed standard. Attention is paid to any variation to that standard to find out why it is wrong, rather than just throw out the variant. This same process can bring environmental improvements in waste and reduction of pollutants lost from the process, benefiting the occupational health and environmental health of people nearby.

Examine why the targets were not met - just as you would examine why a variation from the standard occurred. This teaches you what the underlying causes are, and enables you to put them right at source - one of the principles of Health, Environment & Safety System Guidance.

Repeat the cycle

You need to build upon your achievements so far and begin the cycle again.

Monitor your performance against the targets you have set yourself

Consider further improvements in the following areas

Process improvements: Ways to reduce resources. Are there areas that you have not yet concentrated on where savings can be made?

Good practice: Review the advice available to businesses in your sector

Supply chain: Where may you be able to encourage others to provide good HES systems?

Products in use: Can they be substituted for safer and/or environmental friendly substances?

Research: Could a research team find better ways of doing things?

External verification: Do you want an outside body to confirm your systems are in place?

Formal systems: e.g. quality ISO 9000, environmental management system (ISO14001 or EMAS) or Occupational Health (OSH-ILO 2001)

Learning: how can you develop knowledge and skills to encourage HESSME.

If you want to put on a 2 day course to help implement HESSME go to Learning Programme