BS OHSAS 18001 is an assessment specification for Occupational Health & Safety Management Systems and is certifiable. It was developed in response to the need for companies to meet their health and safety obligations in an efficient manner. BS OHSAS 18001 was introduced in 2007 and supercedes earlier versions of OHSAS 18001.
Standards
BS OHSAS 18001:2007 is virtually identical in format and structure to ISO 9000 and ISO 14001. There is a two year transition period until 1 July 2009 for those organisations that already have certification to the 1999 specification.
BS OHSAS 18001 refers to the British Standard BS 8800:2004 Guide to occupational health and safety management systems and is supported by OHSAS 18002:2000 Guidelines for the implementation of OHSAS 18001.
BS OHSAS 18001 addresses the following key areas:
Policy
- the OHSAS management programme;
management structure and responsibility; and
consultation and communication
Planning
- hazard identification, risk assessment and risk control; and
- emergency preparedness and response
Implementation and operation
- training, awareness and competence.
Checking and corrective action
- performance measuring, monitoring and improvement.
Implementing BS OHSAS 18001 will:
- be a process similar to that used for ISO 9000 and ISO 14001, which many companies will have already experienced when preparing their quality management system for certification;
- need input from all parts of the company, especially those involved in activities with potentially hazardous aspects; and
- require the implementation team to have a sound knowledge of OHSAS 18002 Guidelines for the implementation of BS OHSAS 18001.
For a summary of the changes see the BSI website.
EEF's OHSAS 18001 system is available free of charge to HSE Guide subscribers. It includes a policy and a series of risk assessment pro-formas for those who are familiar with health and safety management systems.