제 목 : Standards, Standards, Standards
일 자 : 1997년 08월
제공처 : Safety ＆ health(EU UPDATE)
ISO 9000, DIN 4551,NEN 3087, CEN... Standards seem to be everywhere and
range from specifying product design to management procedures. Yet many
seem to be very general. For example, "products and service standards
should be designed to ensure safety in use, storage and transport," says
part of one European national standard Obvious, isn't it?
Overgard Hansen from Denmark's Working Environment Service agrees that
some standards do seem quite general. This can still prove useful, however.
"Standards form a batkground for establishing your own system," he says.
"They set up principles. They can help ensure that your product is OK
because of the way you organized the production process."
Standards that cover management are an important feature of workplace
health and safety, especially for larger companies. They provide a number
of general topic headings to give some idea of how to manage health and
safety, says Hansen. "How you interpret standard will depend on the
culture of the company. Standards can help you spend less money on
bureaucracy and more on making the company's products."
Every country has its own national standards authority and there is much
debate over what organization has the "best" standards. CEN is the European
standards organization, and the lnternational Standard Organization is the
global standards network which consists of representatives from all
countries. lSO does not as yet have management standards for occupational
health and safety, nor are such standards under consideration from CEN,
although several member states have made proposals on the issue.
"It is much easier for companies to improve health and safety if it is
integrated into management practices, and that is what standards attempt
to do," says Veronique de Broect from ANPAT, a leading Belgium health
and safety authority.
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