Safety Management System

Lessons learnt from the past, and in particular from the analysis of major industrial accidents, have prompted Community and then national regulations to take an increasingly global approach to risk management. In recognition of the fact that most of the malfunctions involved in the origins or course of accidents are of an organizational nature, the legislator has sought to provide a framework for the implementation of a safety management system at high-risk facilities.

The aim of these regulations, which came into force in France in 2000, is to minimize the risk of major accidents and limit their consequences for people and the environment. To meet these objectives, the safety management system has been designed as a comprehensive organizational system, enabling manufacturers to guarantee, maintain and improve the safety level of industrial facilities. It includes provisions relating to the organization, functions and training of company personnel, as well as procedures and resources of all kinds aimed at preventing major accidents.

The safety management system is one of the three pillars of industrial risk management, closely linked to the hazard study (the cornerstone of the risk identification and quantification process) and to the emergency plans (POI, PPI) which provide the framework for the – organization of the industrial company and the French government – in the event of a major accident at the facility.

Numerous international standards have also made it possible to organize risk management at company level. Their significant development and the wide dissemination of the principles they underpin have harmonized industrial safety management systems worldwide.

In France, in 2018, of some 1,310 Seveso sites, over half (705) are classified as "Seveso high threshold" and therefore subject to the implementation of an SMS and its control by the Administration.

The minimum requirements for this implementation are very precisely defined by regulations. The implementation and monitoring of the system are subject to regular checks by the Administration (inspection of classified installations). This article will first detail the requirements of these regulations, then look at the methods and procedures for implementing this organization on an industrial site. Finally, it will look at the means of ensuring that it is properly implemented.