Reporting
Reporting for ongoing inspections may be quite informal. Depending upon the need, it could involve a memo to arrange for corrective action, or it could be as simple as writing yourself a reminder note about follow-up action in your daily journal.
A planned inspection, however, should be followed by a formal report within 24 to 72 hours. The report is an important part of the inspection process, as it provides several things:
- A record of corrective actions required, with target dates.
- A record of long-term safety trends within the company.
- Documentation of compliance with applicable legislation.
- Positive reinforcement to employees whom these inspections are meaningful.
Reporting forms vary from the company to the company, but the reporting form should be tailored to your organization/company and help provide a concise, factual picture of the inspection results.
When you write the report, describe each hazard and its location very specifically, then give each hazard a priority level to indicate the urgency of the corrective action required.
NOTE: The purpose is to take a safety inventory, not catch guilty people; therefore, the report should only identify substandard acts, not the names of workers seen doing them.
- Follow-Up and Monitoring
Once your report is accepted, and your recommendations are authorized, it is essential to follow up to see that the corrections are made according to schedule. Not to do so would defeat the purpose of the inspection.
The report should be analyzed, along with previous reports, to get a larger picture of safety on the worksite. The comparison may give you insights into why accident/incidents are occurring in certain areas, or point to simple solutions you had not thought of.