Introduction
Safety is an extremely significant element for every human being. In every activity undertaken, safety measures come first. Most key installation areas for the public provide safe and healthy environment for the members of the public.
The Safety Management Systems have the mandate to reduce and eliminate hazards (Kohli, 2007). An airport is one of the places that safety is a main concern.
Safety management system examines all the operations at the airport. Airports are vital resources for most nations in the world. They analyze the safety measures put in place in all sectors of the airport (Alexander and Rodrigues, 2004).
Safety Policy
The safety management systems are responsible for changing the culture of safety in an organization. Safety policies put in place improves strategies, and management systems (Broderick, 2007). They also ensure that the airport performs at international standards.
The policies handle risk management. It minimizes risks associated with technical breakdown, human error and organizational failure (Airport Policy, 2005). In addition, skilled and trained personnel implement these policies.
The safety policies indicate the integration of safety principles in the organization structure. It is compulsory that all safety policies be communicated to all staff working in the airport (Safety management system, 2010). This staff includes; police, vendors, taxi operators, airline operators among others.
The policy implies that safety management systems should be implemented in the airport (Kohli, 2007). It also calls for commitment for all level of management to ensure that the safety management systems will be implemented.
The policy also entails that the executives in the organization structure to monitor the safety performance in the airport. It is the mandate of all employees in the airport to report any potential safety issue. They should do so without any fear or reprisal (Airport Policy, 2005).
Moreover, clear standards should be set in order to control the behavior of all individuals in the airport. Necessary resources should also be provided to ensure that there are no short comings when handling safety issues (Alexander and Rodrigues, 2004).
Safety accountability should be upheld at all time. The subordinate staffs are accountable to their immediate supervisor for all the safety performance in their working section. The members of the public are also responsible for their actions. Supervisors should provide an ample environment for staff to complete their duties (Bircher and Boesiger, 2010).
Another crucial policy is to ensure airport licensing requirements adhere to safety management programme. Additionally safety assessment standards should be common and match up to international procedures.
Safety promotion in various sectors of the airport ensures that the organization fully understands the safety management system (Jorna et al., 1999). Training and effective communication enhances the safety promotion procedures.
The promotion imposes a new culture in the organization which ensures SMS succeeds and that all employees are responsible for safety (Airport Policy, 2005). This provides a non-punitive environment which motivates identification correlation and correction of safety issues.
The organizational structure should maintain safety objectives. Safety manager in the organization is the focal point for the implementation of safety management system. He also holds a high position in the organization structure which enables him or her to communicate with the top level management at ease.
Another role for safety manager is to lay out procedures that remedies safety risks to the organization. The procedures are easily accessible for reference (Safety management system, 2010). Training of safety measures and handling safety procedures is undertaken at each managerial level. Employees familiarize to necessary safety practices and any changes that may have taken effect.
In the top management, their commitment is to ensure safety excellence, accountable for safety performances and demonstrating perfect example to the subordinate on safety practices (Airport Policy, 2005). The middle level management plays the role of ensuring subordinate staffs execute all safety procedures accordingly.
They supervise effective management of safety resources. The lower level management has to comply with the relevant safety procedures set. They are also expected to apply all the procedures correctly. In addition, they are to report any situation of safety infringement (Bircher and Boesiger, 2010).
Safety Risk Management
The safety management programme assists the safety manager to identify and handle incidents and accident that infringe safety. After identification, assessment of risk follows.
This procedure is centered on a systematic approach. The key role of this risk management is to minimize property damage, waste of finances loss of human life, as well as social environmental losses (Chien-tsung, Schreckengast and Jia, 2011).
There are various safety risk management techniques employed to ensure reduction of risk within the airport environment. Firstly hazard identification is undertaken to determine the best action plan to take in order to solve the identified safety risk. The identification is done proactively.
Secondly risk assessment comes takes centre stage to determine the severity of the situation. In this stage, the nature of risk is determined so as to know the urgency of step to be taken.
After wards, risk mitigation ensures the risk is addressed appropriately (Chien-tsung, Schreckengast and Jia, 2011). This can be fully achieved if the management provides adequate resources for the task. The mitigation may be based on cost, capability of an organization or timeline (Alexander and Rodrigues, 2004).
It is appropriate that the organization should have a system to monitor risks that affect the organization. This system applies safe operation when counteracting risks. Thus, the risk is reduced and eliminated. The mitigation should be under strict supervision until the safety strategies are working correctly.
The risk assessment done is finally documented for future reference (Chien-tsung, Schreckengast and Jia, 2011). The implemented measure closely monitors and compares other possible measures that were supposed to be taken.
The risk management system brings together all leading airlines, airline operators, air traffic control and ground handling providers to work towards achieving one goal. Despite the availability, of resources, excellent communication among these risk management stakeholders ensures the plan is a success.
In other areas, a disaster management plan is put in place to handle emergency services (Jorna et al., 1999). This plan manages the traumatic aftermath of serious disasters. Relatives and operational personnel receive counseling after encountering dangerous disasters (Jorna et al., 1999).
The airport authorities channel resources to run this management. The regulatory considers the importance of this effective hence the federal family assistance plan for aviation disasters was set up to ensure this plan succeeds.
Safety Assurance
Safety assurance is a main pillar for safety management systems. It entails internal, external and safety auditing in the airport. Safety audits carried out ensures that all the Safety management systems fulfill safety quality. It goes hand in hand with monitoring of safety performance functions.
The external audit such as state regulatory authority ensures that all aerodromes operators oblige to international safety standards (Alexander and Rodrigues, 2004). An external audit is an independent safety oversight conducted in the aerodrome.
The audits also stipulate that the operator in the aerodromes should arrange for an internal audit of safety management. This audit is conducted in the form of line management in acceptable conditions (Laqui et al., 2007).
The safety manager assists in setting up expertise and local, internal inspection teams. The internal audit is conducted in each department of the organization on a regular basis (Sushant, 2008).
The structure of safety management system is efficient and complies with procedures and instructions. It also should relay satisfactory in the competency and maintaining a high level safety performance.
The safety assurance programme in SMS assesses if the organization is adhering to safety policies as well as attaining safety objectives (Kohli, 2007). For many airports, they outsource most of their airport service providers. This calls for external audit so as to supplement the safety oversight. This programme is regarded as a mandatory organizational safety system requirement.
Procedures of safety management include; inspections of various facilities in the airport, inspection of equipment, critical analysis of operators functions and evaluation of safety programs in the airport. The safety audits further looks at planning conduct and follow-ups. Audits check list is prepared and published for early preparation(Broderick, 2007).
The safety audits conducted ensures certain principles are met. One of the principles is the availability of relevant documentation. Another principle is that staff should also be available whenever required to participate in interviews conducted by the auditors.
Facts produced by the airport authorities will be examined in an objective manner. Staffs interviewed are required to give honest information since the information will be used for safety issues only. The interviewed persons are also assured of confidentiality (Safety management system, 2010).
After the audit, a report is written to describe the findings of the audit. The report is presented to the unit audited within a specified period (Alexander and Rodrigues, 2004). The airport authority will receive feedback of the audit conducted.
Positive feedback should be highlighted and enhanced whereas the negative feedback should be resolved and corrective measures taken. In addition to corrective measures taken follow-up audits are undertaken. This ensures that aspects of the operations are making positive strides towards correcting the hazard.
It also ensures loopholes in the safety management systems are amended. The corrective action should be within safety framework and able to resolve hazards (Sushant, 2008). The management or the organization should be co-operative when auditors have notified them their organization.
The authorities should provide preparatory material in advance of the actual audit. For instance, all records and resource requirement for the audit should be available. An audit plan should also be prepared prior to the audit (Sushant, 2008).
Early planning for an audit ensures feasibility and availing of info required for the audit. A check list comes in handy to allocate relevant knowledge on topics to be audited (Broderick, 2007). Various elements in the checklists include; policies and standard, safety requirement, accountability, documentation and capabilities of the organization.
The audit will contain information such as, training records, aircrafts procedure manuals, in-flight information concerning technical reports, and flight data recordings.
In addition, meetings and consultation should be held to review reports on all accidents and incidences that may have taken place in the airport (Laqui et al., 2007). Open reporting culture should be applied in order to raise the attention of management in critical safety information. This will lead to appropriate risk assessment and consideration.
Safety Promotion
Safety promotion is the foundation of a sound safety culture. This pillar of safety management system stresses out three main elements. These elements are communication, participation and training (Kohli, 2007). Various safety educations should be carried out to instill safety values and practices to the different staffs in the aerodrome.
This will advocate for safety, and competence in the airport. The safety philosophy should be understood well and upheld. Safety education entails that the staffs in the airport are up to date with responsibilities of the safety framework put in place (Alexander and Rodrigues, 2004).
Employees should familiarize all safety practices and procedures. The training creates awareness of the objectives of safety management system. The depth of training should coincide with individual position and capability. These processes seek to foster airport safety environment.
There are several training needs that the employees and the organization should observe. Job responsibilities should incorporate safety responsibilities and also added to the job description (Bircher and Boesiger, 2010). Safety training should be conducted to all level of management.
A specialist trainee should be sourced to conduct this procedure. All trainees should receive basic introductory in safety management, risk management and safety culture. For one to become a safety specialist, he or she needs to gain knowledge in investigating, monitoring and performing safety assessment (Jorna et al., 1999).
Other training procedures include; reporting of accidents, handling specific safety initiatives and emergency procedures. When all employees undertake the training lessons and risk resolution, they become legible for hazard identification and mitigation. Having a safety culture implies that all employees are responsible for safety (Laqui et al., 2007).
Safety communication plays a vital role in ensuring safety promotion. Safety information will be communicated through various channels for example, investigation reports, audit reports, meeting minutes and conference proceedings. At the airport information is disseminated through direct letters, organization’s intranet, posters, and newsletters.
The mode of communication used should be a two-way communication in order to allow complete flow of information. Efficient communication of safety information provides a mechanism that develops positive safety culture (Bircher and Boesiger, 2010). This will in turn reciprocate to promotion of a safe environment.
In addition to promote safety culture, the safety promotion programme will create safety awareness among employees. When much consideration is put on dissemination safety information, redress to rationale introduction of new procedures becomes easy. Additionally modern communication methods have enhanced prototype framework for hazard management (Laqui et al., 2007).
Conclusion
Most reports show that there is a lack of integration between organizational structures and safety standard practices. The nature of risks that face airport operations calls for a lot of concern.
It is difficult to attain high safety standards since different subjects in the organizational structures act under different regulatory regime. The safety of the airport lies squarely in management responsibilities (Jorna et al., 1999). The management involvement in resource allocation and financial aid encourages active support for safety programmes.
References
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