A health and safety briefing provided by the IET

Other Health and Safety Briefings have discussed aspects of Risk Assessment:

• Risk Assessment – Practical Application in the Workplace
• Risk Assessment – Legal Position and Interpretation
• Quantified Risk Assessment Techniques (Part 1) – Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA)
• Quantified Risk Assessment Techniques (Part 2) – Event Tree Analysis (ETA)
• Quantified Risk Assessment Techniques (Part 3) – Fault Tree Analysis (FTA)
• Hazard and Operability Studies – (HAZOP)

This Briefing Note is intended to explain the meaning of the term Hazard Analysis (HAZAN).

Hazard Analysis (HAZAN) is simply the application of numerical methods to obtain an understanding of hazards in terms of:

• How often a hazard will manifest itself
• With what consequences for people, process and plant.

HAZAN is therefore the essential prerequisite for the complete risk assessment process, i.e. first analyse the hazards and then go on to assess the risks they present and determine what, if any, ameliorating measures should be taken.

Hazard analysis (HAZAN) (203 k)