Engineering and Analytical Approaches to Hazard Avoidance

One of the strengths of engineering approach to hazard avoidance is that it identifies potential hazards in the workplace, and takes the necessary precautions in order to create a safe working environment (Concept of Hazard Avoidance, 2010). The approach does this by either removing a potential hazard or suppressing it. Similarly, the analytical approach takes the necessary measures to prevent occurrence of a hazard once its occurrence has been identified.

In addition, the strength of engineering approach of hazard avoidance is it takes an all-round approach: it focuses on all areas of a workplace. These include workplace machineries, equipments, protective systems, environments, and guards (Concept of Hazard Avoidance, 2010). However, for analytical approach, it mainly concentrates on workplace machineries and equipments (Hazard Avoidance, 2011). It does not pay much attention to areas such as employees’ protective systems and workplace environment. This is one of the weaknesses of the analytical approach.

However, the strength of analytical approach is that it addresses the cost-benefit question before taking any hazard avoidance measure (Hazard Avoidance, 2011). This is to ensure that the measures take are beneficial to the employees and the entire workplace while the costs of such measures are minimal. This helps to avoid creation of a false sense of security in the workplace, a thing that engineering approach does. Engineering approach takes hazard avoidance measures such as suppressing and diluting of hazards. These measures do not lead to the creation of a hazard free environment. They only create a false sense of security among the employees (Concept of Hazard Avoidance, 2010).

In analytical approach, potential hazards are thoroughly analyzed using historical data. This is to ensure that the preventive measures taken are safe and do not have the potential to cause other hazards (Hazard Avoidance, 2011). Conversely, in engineering approach, preventive measures taken are not usually analyzed for possible hazards. Therefore, many of the preventive measures taken under engineering approach usually cause other hazards. This is a weakness of engineering approach.

Finally, engineering approach has a weakness because it advocates for removal of guards from machines and equipments. Such measures can actually result into a hazard. Contrary, analytical approach does not advocate for removal of guards from machines. Such a measure is taken only after enough analysis provides evidence that it is safe, and its benefits overweigh the costs.