Hazard Identification
Domain 2 tests whether you can find hazards before they cause harm, separate hazard from risk, and pick an identification technique that fits the task.
Hazard versus risk
A hazard is the potential to cause harm (a tower crane, respirable crystalline silica). Risk is the likelihood and severity of that harm in the actual context of use.
Identification methods
- Job safety analysis (JSA): break the task into steps, list hazards per step, then controls.
- Checklist inspection: walk the site against a standard list; strong for edge protection, access, housekeeping.
- HAZID / what-if brainstorming: new plant, temporary works, unusual sequences.
- Near-miss and incident review: reactive but high-yield.
- Change and interface review: new subcontractor, resequenced work, night shift, seasonal weather.
- Worker reporting: anyone may report; visible action on reports keeps the channel alive.
Construction usual suspects
Work at height; excavation collapse; plant-pedestrian interface; lifting operations; electricity and buried services; silica and asbestos; noise; hand-arm vibration; manual handling; confined spaces; hot work; hazardous substances; lone working; weather.
Worked example
A crew will break out a concrete slab in an occupied building. Hazards: silica dust, noise, vibration, sharp edges, possible structural instability, buried services. Controls follow the hierarchy: service scan and structural check before cutting, water suppression with on-tool extraction, hearing protection zone, vibration trigger-time rotation, exclusion zone and edge protection.
Traps
Listing generic items such as slips and trips with no site detail; writing controls in the hazard column; treating PPE as identification; overlooking health hazards because they are invisible and slow; relying only on incident data and never on proactive methods.