CSP cheat sheet

Hierarchy of controls ranked most to least effective: elimination, substitution, engineering controls, administrative controls, PPE.

Risk = likelihood (probability) of a hazardous event × severity of consequence; the score, not the hazard count, drives priority.

TRIR = (number of OSHA recordable cases × 200,000) ÷ total hours worked; 200,000 = 100 employees × 40 h/wk × 50 wk.

DART rate = (days away, restricted, or transferred cases × 200,000) ÷ hours worked.

Severity rate = (days away from work × 200,000) ÷ hours worked.

NIOSH lifting equation: RWL = LC × HM × VM × DM × AM × FM × CM; Lifting Index = load weight ÷ RWL, and LI > 1.0 indicates elevated risk.

Noise: OSHA 8-hour TWA PEL is 90 dBA with a 5 dB exchange rate; hearing conservation program required at 85 dBA TWA; ACGIH TLV is 85 dBA with a 3 dB exchange rate.

Exposure limits: TLV-TWA is an 8-hour time-weighted average, TLV-STEL is a 15-minute average, and a ceiling limit is never to be exceeded.

Prevention through Design applies the hierarchy at the design phase of facilities, equipment, and processes, where risk reduction is most durable and least costly.

ISO 45001 follows PDCA across clause 4 (context), 5 (leadership and worker participation), 6 (planning), 7 (support), 8 (operation), 9 (performance evaluation), 10 (improvement).

ANSI/ASSP Z10 is the U.S. consensus OHSMS standard; ISO 14001 addresses environmental management and ISO 9001 addresses quality management.

The OH&S policy must include commitments to safe and healthy working conditions, prevention of injury and ill health, fulfillment of legal and other requirements, and continual improvement.

Clause 6 planning requires hazard identification, assessment of risks and opportunities, and determination of legal and other requirements.

Clause 8.1.2 requires the hierarchy of controls to be applied when eliminating hazards and reducing risks.

Clause 5.4 requires consultation and participation of workers, including non-managerial workers, in the OHSMS.

Management review (clause 9.3) must consider audit results, compliance status, incident and nonconformity data, worker input, and objective progress, and output decisions on improvement and resources.

Documented information must be controlled for availability, protection, distribution, and revision status (clause 7.5).

Leading indicators (near-miss reports, inspection completion, training hours) measure prevention activity; lagging indicators (TRIR, DART) measure outcomes.

A hazard is a potential source of harm; risk is the combination of the likelihood of occurrence and the severity of harm.

Risk score commonly = likelihood × severity on a 5×5 matrix; scores above the defined acceptability threshold require controls plus reassessment of residual risk.

Qualitative assessment uses descriptive scales, semi-quantitative assessment assigns numeric ranks, and quantitative assessment uses measured probability and consequence data.

JSA/JHA breaks a task into sequential steps, identifies hazards per step, and assigns controls before work begins.

HAZOP applies guide words (no, more, less, as well as, part of, reverse, other than) to process parameters to systematically find deviations from design intent.

FMEA is inductive and ranks failure modes by RPN = severity × occurrence × detection; fault tree analysis is deductive, starting from the top event.

Bow-tie analysis links threats through a top event to consequences, with preventive barriers on the left and mitigative barriers on the right.

Exposure assessment groups workers into similar exposure groups (SEGs) and compares measured exposure to the applicable occupational exposure limit.

ALARP requires risk to be reduced as low as reasonably practicable by weighing control cost against risk reduction benefit, not by demanding zero risk.

Controls are selected in hierarchy order; PPE and warnings are last lines of defense and cannot be the sole control where a feasible higher-order control exists.

Local exhaust ventilation captures contaminants at the source; capture velocity at the hood is the design parameter, and airflow must be periodically measured.

29 CFR 1910.147 requires an energy control program, lockout/tagout devices, training, and verification of a zero energy state before servicing or maintenance.

29 CFR 1910.146 permit-required confined space entry requires a permit, attendant, entry supervisor, pre-entry atmospheric testing (O2 between 19.5% and 23.5%), and rescue capability.

Fall protection trigger: 6 ft in construction (29 CFR 1926.501); 4 ft in general industry (29 CFR 1910 Subpart D).

29 CFR 1910.132(d) requires a written, certified hazard assessment before PPE selection; 29 CFR 1910.134 requires medical evaluation, fit testing, and training for respirator use.

Administrative controls such as job rotation, work-rest cycles, and procedures reduce exposure duration or frequency but do not reduce inherent hazard magnitude.

Substitution replaces a hazardous agent or process with a less hazardous alternative and ranks second only to elimination in control effectiveness.

An inspection checks conformance to a defined requirement at a point in time; an audit is a systematic, independent, documented evaluation against defined criteria.

Internal audit programs must be planned considering process importance and prior audit results, and use objective, impartial auditors.

A corrective action is closed only after verifying implementation and effectiveness, not merely after the action item is marked complete.

Nonconformity, observation, and opportunity for improvement are distinct classifications; only a nonconformity requires formal corrective action.

PDCA: Plan (objectives, hazard controls, legal requirements), Do (implement), Check (monitor, measure, audit), Act (correct and improve).

Six Sigma DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control) is a data-driven improvement method that complements the PDCA cycle.

Monitoring and measuring equipment used to evaluate conformity must be calibrated and traceable to a recognized national or international standard.

Benchmarking compares safety performance metrics against internal historical baselines or external peer and industry rates.

Compliance audits test conformance to legal requirements; conformance audits test the management system against the clauses of the adopted standard.

Causal chain: root causes (management system deficiencies) → contributing/basic causes → direct causes (unsafe acts or conditions) → incident → loss.

Investigation sequence: stabilize and treat the injured, secure the scene, preserve evidence, collect data, analyze causes, then assign corrective actions.

Interview witnesses separately and as soon as practical after the event, using open-ended questions and recording verbatim statements rather than opinions or conclusions.

5 Whys iteratively asks why to move from symptom to system cause; fishbone (Ishikawa) organizes causes into people, equipment, method, material, measurement, and environment.

Fault tree analysis is deductive: it starts from the top event and identifies the combinations of failures required to produce it.

OSHA reporting: work-related fatalities within 8 hours; in-patient hospitalizations, amputations, and loss of an eye within 24 hours.

OSHA 300 log must be posted by February 1 covering the prior year and retained 5 years; OSHA 301 incident reports are also retained 5 years.

Investigations target system failures rather than individual blame; disciplinary action is a separate management process.

Corrective actions must address root causes, have a named owner and due date, be tracked to completion, and be verified for effectiveness.

EAP minimum elements under 29 CFR 1910.38(c): reporting procedures, evacuation procedures and routes, employee accounting procedures, rescue and medical duties, and names or titles of contacts.

Written EAP required for employers with 11 or more employees; employers with 10 or fewer may communicate the plan orally.

Fire prevention plan under 29 CFR 1910.39 covers major fire hazards, handling and storage procedures, potential ignition sources, and maintenance of fire protection equipment.

HAZWOPER 29 CFR 1910.120(q) requires emergency response training, an emergency response plan, and use of an incident command system.

Emergency responder training levels are first responder awareness, first responder operations, hazardous materials technician, hazardous materials specialist, and on-scene incident commander.

Accountability after evacuation: designated personnel perform a headcount at the assembly area and report missing persons; re-entry occurs only when cleared.

Drills must be documented and critiqued to identify gaps in alarm audibility, communication, evacuation time, and role clarity.

Incident Command System uses common terminology, a modular organization, unified command, and a span of control of three to seven reporting elements.

Alarm signals must be perceptible throughout all occupied areas, including high-noise areas and areas occupied by persons with impaired hearing, using audible and visual notification.

OSH Act Section 5(a)(1) General Duty Clause: the employer must furnish a workplace free from recognized hazards likely to cause death or serious physical harm where no specific standard applies.

29 CFR 1910 covers general industry, 29 CFR 1926 covers construction, and 29 CFR 1904 covers injury and illness recordkeeping.

OSHA 300 log partial exemptions apply to establishments with 10 or fewer employees and to industries listed in Appendix A to Subpart B of Part 1904.

HazCom 29 CFR 1910.1200 aligns with GHS: 16-section safety data sheets, standardized pictograms, signal words Danger/Warning, and hazard and precautionary statements.

An OSHA-approved state plan must be at least as effective as the federal program and must cover state and local government employees.

Consensus standards (ANSI/ASSP, NFPA, ASTM) are not independently enforceable unless incorporated by reference into a regulation or used as evidence of a recognized hazard under the General Duty Clause.

OSH Act Section 11(c) prohibits retaliation against employees for filing complaints, reporting injuries, or otherwise exercising protected rights.

Key environmental statutes: RCRA (hazardous waste cradle-to-grave), CERCLA (release reporting and cleanup), Clean Air Act, and EPCRA (community right-to-know and Toxic Release Inventory).

OSHA citations are classified as other-than-serious, serious, willful, repeated, or failure-to-abate, and penalty amounts are adjusted annually for inflation.