Notes

What is an SWMS or Safe Work Method Statement?
What is an SWMS?

An SWMS is a record that lays out the high-risk construction work tasks to be carried out at a workplace, the dangers emerging from these tasks as well as the measures to be put in place to manage the threats.

One SWMS can be used for work that entails numerous high-risk construction job tasks, for instance, a work task that requires utilising a powered mobile plant, working at elevations of greater than 2 metres and also working adjacent to a road made use of by web traffic other than pedestrians.


An SWMS is classified as a management control as well as is made use of to sustain higher-order controls to eliminate or reduce threats to health and wellness, for instance, design controls.

An SWMS is typically various from various other files that focus on specific tasks or processes, such as a Task Security Analysis or a Safe Operating Treatment. An SWMS is not planned to be a treatment-- rather it is a tool to aid supervisors as well as employees confirm and also keep track of the control procedures needed at the workplace.

What do I require to do?

A PCBU needs to prepare an SWMS-- or ensure an SWMS has actually been prepared-- for risky building work activities. An SWMS need to be prepared before this work begins. For all other construction tasks, an SWMS is not called for.

Nonetheless, a PCBU should manage threats to health and wellness by eliminating or minimising threats so far as is sensibly achievable.

A principal contractor needs to additionally acquire the SWMS prior to risky building work on a building and construction project starts.

Who should prepare an SWMS?

The individual in charge of carrying out the risky construction work is finest placed to prepare the SWMS in assessment with workers who will be directly taken part in the work. Usually, this means an SWMS is prepared by the builder for their workers, or by the subcontractor for their workers
and also themselves.

The primary service provider, builder and also subcontractors should seek advice from each other to identify who remains in the best placement to prepare the SWMS.

Managers, specialists, leading hands and also workers must all be associated with developing an SWMS. Consulting workers is very important so they comprehend the information of the SWMS and what they are needed to do to implement and preserve danger controls. Sharing details and using the expertise and experience of employees will help see to it the work is done in accordance with the SWMS.

If there is a Health and Safety Representative at the workplace, they must additionally be spoken with when creating an SWMS.

What is the function of the major contractor?

Under the WHS Rules each 'building and construction job'-- that is a project that entails construction work where the price of the construction job is $250 000 or even more-- must have a 'major contractor'.

A primary professional needs to take all reasonable actions to get an SWMS from any professional accomplishing risky building and construction work before the job begins. If there is no SWMS the primary contractor should make arrangements for an SWMS to be prepared, as an example by the specialist. A primary service provider must put in place plans to make certain the risky building and construction job is done securely according to the SWMS. This can be done by monitoring the application of the SWMS 'on the ground'.

The WHS Laws need that the principal professionals' WHS administration plan includes certain setups for accumulating, evaluating, keeping an eye on and also reviewing the SWMS.

What info must be consisted of in an SWMS?

An SWMS have to:

- Determine the work that is high-risk building and construction work.

- Specify hazards relating to the high-risk building work as well as the threats to health
as well as safety.

- Describe the measures to be carried out to regulate the risks, and

- Describe exactly how the control measures are to be applied, kept track of and evaluated.

An SWMS needs to be short as well as focus on defining the particular dangers determined for the high danger construction work to be taken on and also the control determines to be implemented so the job is carried out securely.

A lengthy, excessively in-depth SWMS can be difficult to comprehend, apply at the workplace, monitor or review.

An SWMS need to be easily recognised by workers, including those from non-English talking histories. For example, images or diagrams might be a much more efficient method of communicating details.

While there are other legal needs to ensure health and safety-- as an example, to control direct exposure to noise and also manual task hazards-- these dangers as well as run the risk of controls do not need to be consisted of in an SWMS.

If the SWMS is based upon a workplace-specific danger evaluation, proof of the risk analysis might be called for by the regulator or for bookkeeping purposes but does not need to be detailed in the SWMS.

SWMS template

This layout details the details which needs to be included in an SWMS. The layout likewise consists of various other details which should be included as best practice, for example, that was spoken with to prepare the SWMS. However, when including more information to the SWMS think about the relevance as well as importance of the details and also whether it will add unnecessary length or intricacy to the paper.

Can a generic SWMS be used?
It is very important for an SWMS to reflect the details situations of the office in which it will run-- that is the workplace where the high-risk construction job is to be carried out, the work environment as well as the employees accomplishing the work.

A common SWMS made use of at various offices might not meet the requirements of the WHS laws unless it has initially been reviewed to take into consideration the threats and risks at the certain work environment and modified as essential. One SWMS can be prepared to cover a variety of tasks if it thinks about the transforming nature of the workplace.

Alternatively, a separate SWMS can be prepared for each high-risk building work task. In this situation think about scenarios where various tasks affect each other, for instance making use of powered mobile plant throughout the construction of a passage.
Applying and reviewing an SWMS High-risk building and construction job have to be performed based on the SWMS. The PCBU has to implemented arrangements to guarantee the SWMS is being adhered to, for instance, workplace check outs.

If job is not being executed according to the SWMS then it have to stop instantly or as soon as it is secure to do so. In these cases, the SWMS must be examined and also if necessary revised to mirror the most safe means to perform the work that is reasonably practicable. Job has to not resume up until the job can be carried out according to the SWMS.

A PCBU has to likewise guarantee an SWMS is reviewed and as necessary changed if the actions put in place to manage dangers to health and safety are revised.

Where do I keep an SWMS?

The SWMS needs to be kept at the work environment where the risky construction work will be brought out. If this is not possible after that an SWMS should be kept at an area where it can be delivered to the office promptly. An SWMS can also be kept online.

More information
More details can be found in the Code of Practice: Building and construction service the Safe Work Australia site (www.swa.gov.au).
Designing a Quality Safety Management Plan
swms


Website: https://www.occupational-safety.com.au/collections/swms