Encouraging inherently safer production in European firms: a report from the field

It is now generally recognized that in order to make significant advances i n accident prevention, the focus of industrial firms must shift from assess ing the risks of existing production and manufacturing systems to discoveri ng technological alternatives, i.e. from the identification of problems to the identification of solutions. Encouraging the industrial firm to perform (1) an inherent safety opportunity audit (ISOA) to identify where inherent ly safer technology (IST) is needed, and (2) a technology options analysis (TOA) and to identify specific inherently safer options that will advance t he adoption of primary prevention strategies that will alter production sys tems so that there are less inherent safety risks. Experience gained from a methodology to encourage inherently safer production (ISP) in industrial f irms in the Netherlands and Greece is discussed. Successful approaches requ ire both technological and managerial changes. Firms must have the willingn ess, opportunity, and the capability to change. Implications for the EU Sev eso, IPPC, and EMAS Directives are also discussed, (C) 2000 Elsevier Scienc e B.V. All rights reserved.