Hazard identification for risk assessment using the PRA technique in the automotive industry

Abstract

The article presents a case study of an International Company of the Automotive Sector, which is dedicated to the manufacture of auto parts to supply the needs of Mexico, Brazil, the United States and China. It is important for the company to constantly improve; in this case it seeks to adapt the conditions of its OOccupational Health and Safety Management system to the applicable legal requirements to create safe work environments and thereby reduce work-related accidents. La methodology was divided in two sections, first section general information the automotive plant which include management and organization, localization, environment and surroundings, dangerous substances, hazardous installations and activities, and finally services. For de second section include the Preliminary Hazard Analysis PHA, Proportional Risk Assessment PRA Technique and principle ALARA. The results showed that there were 22 accidents in the 2018–2020 period, the accidents were classified into six categories according to the sources of danger that caused them. Two estimates were made, in the first the highest value was 70 related to the unsafe acts category and the lowest 18 from the category accidents caused outside the work facilities. Twenty-one immediate actions were also implemented, where the accidents were not considered serious. For the second estimate, the highest value of 70 dropped to 56 and the lowest value of 18 remained the same. Finally, it is recommended to standardize the data collection formats to the parameters requested by the PHA, PRA technique and ALARA Principle to perform a faster analysis of the information, it is also proposed that the risk assessment be part of the daily activities of Management of the System; As a line of future research, a methodology could be applied to implement a better safety culture in workers to reduce unsafe acts in addition to training programs.