A plant hazard risk assessment is a written check of one item of plant: what could hurt someone, how likely and how serious that is, and what you will do about it. In Queensland the duty behind it is to manage the risks of plant under section 21 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 and section 203 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011.
Have you ever been asked for a Plant Hazard Risk Assessment, Plant Safety Analysis or similar? Read on to learn what the law says, and check out our safety templates to save time!
Just need a Plant Hazard Risk Assessment Template? Download our Plant Risk Assessment Form here – you can use this template to conduct plant risk assessments for your workplace!
What is plant?
This has nothing to do with ferns or potting mix. The Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld) says plant includes any machinery, equipment, appliance, container, implement and tool, any component of those things, and anything fitted or connected to them. That covers everything from a forklift to a computer.
Types of plant
Everything used in a workplace is plant, but there are different types, and different rules for them.
Some plant, such as a forklift truck, can only be operated by someone who holds the right high risk work licence (section 81 of the Regulation; schedule 3 lists the classes). For more information on what types of plant require licensing, visit the QLD Government page on work licences.
Other plant, such as a pressure vessel or a mobile crane over a certain size, must be registered (see “Registered plant and schedule 5” below). A small, low risk item that needs manual support to operate, such as a screwdriver, is still plant, but the general duties and a quick check will usually be enough.
What is a plant hazard?
A hazard is anything that could cause harm. A risk is the chance that it will, and how serious the harm would be. Our guides on hazard vs risk and how to identify hazards go into more detail.
What is a risk assessment?
Managing risks to eliminate or minimise risks to workers is a condition of doing business in Queensland as legislated in the Work Health and Safety Act 2011. The person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) has the primary duty to provide a safe workplace, company officers such as directors must exercise due diligence to make sure the PCBU meets that duty, and every worker has a duty to take reasonable care for their own health and safety.
What do the WHS laws say about plant risks?
- The Act (section 21): a person with management or control of plant at a workplace must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that the plant is without risks to the health and safety of any person.
- The Regulation (section 203): that person must manage the risks of the plant. Sections 34 to 38 set out how: identify reasonably foreseeable hazards, eliminate the risk so far as is reasonably practicable, otherwise minimise it using the hierarchy of controls (substitute, isolate or use engineering controls, then administrative controls, then personal protective equipment), keep the controls effective, and review them.
- Specific rules come first (section 33): where the Regulation sets a specific control, such as guarding, you must follow it rather than choose your own.
The Regulation does not set a form or use the words “plant risk assessment” for plant in general. The approved code of practice Managing risks of plant in the workplace says a formal risk assessment step is not needed when the hazard and the control are already well known, and that keeping records of the process helps show you have met your duties and helps with later assessments. A written assessment for each item of plant is simply the clearest record. Some situations do require an assessment, for example when plant is used for something other than its designed purpose (section 206).
Which specific control measures apply to plant?
Sections 204 to 226 of the Regulation add particular duties for the person with management or control of plant. Check your plant against these when you assess it:
- Installing and commissioning (s 204): do not commission plant until you have established it is, so far as reasonably practicable, without risk, and use competent people to install and dismantle it.
- Alterations and misuse (ss 205 and 206): prevent unauthorised alterations or interference, and use plant only for its designed purpose unless a competent person has assessed the new use as no greater risk.
- Plant not in use (s 207): leave it in a state that does not create a risk.
- Guarding and heat (ss 208 and 209): fixed barriers where access is not needed, interlocked barriers where it is, and guarded or insulated hot and cold parts.
- Controls, emergency stops and warning devices (ss 210 to 212): controls that are identified, easy to reach, protected from accidental activation and able to be locked off; prominent red emergency stops; well-placed warning devices.
- Powered mobile plant (ss 214 and 215): manage the risk of overturning, things falling on the operator, the operator being ejected, collisions and failure of pressurised parts; provide operator protective devices; and make sure the plant does not collide with pedestrians or other powered mobile plant, with a warning device where a collision is possible.
- Particular plant (ss 218 to 226): industrial lift trucks, plant that lifts or suspends loads, tree-lopping plant, industrial robots, lasers, pressure equipment, scaffolds and plant with presence-sensing safeguarding each have their own rules.
Registered plant and schedule 5
Some plant has to be registered before it is used. Schedule 5 of the Regulation lists it in two parts: items whose design must be registered (section 243) and items that must be registered (section 246). Item registration covers tower cranes, lifts, concrete placing booms, mobile cranes over 10 tonnes rated capacity, and boilers and pressure vessels at certain hazard levels. The design list adds things such as boom-type elevating work platforms, prefabricated scaffolding, vehicle hoists and mast climbing work platforms. Schedule 5 also lists exceptions, so check its full wording for your plant.
It is an offence to use plant at a workplace, or to direct or allow a worker to use it, if a regulation requires the plant or its design to be authorised and it is not (section 42 of the Act). The purpose of registering an item is to make sure it is inspected by a competent person and is safe to operate (section 246). Note on your assessment whether an item is registered and when its next inspection is due.
Inspection and maintenance (section 213)
The person with management or control of plant must make sure a competent person carries out its maintenance, inspection and, if necessary, testing. This must follow the manufacturer’s recommendations; if there are none, the recommendations of a competent person; and if neither is reasonably practicable for inspection, it must be done annually. Controls such as guards and emergency stops must also be kept working (section 37).
So what is a plant hazard risk assessment?
A Plant Hazard Risk Assessment is a document that businesses use to identify, assess, control and review the risks associated with a specific item of plant.
Plant hazard risk assessment in four steps
- Identify hazards
- Walk through your place of work and ensure workers are using all plant properly
- Note any housekeeping issues (eg. slip, trip and fall hazards)
- Discuss your workers’ health and ask them about any of their safety concerns, near misses or unreported incidents.
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- Assess risk
The severity of risk will depend on the type of plant. If something goes wrong with a photocopier, the result might be discomfort or mild injury to the user. Incidents when operating a forklift, however, can and have resulted in death.
Factors to consider include;
- the type of plant,
- the condition it’s in,
- the location it is used,
- how it is used,
- how often it is used, and
- the skill and knowledge of the person operating it.
- What controls are already in place to reduce the risk of harm?
Some questions you may want to ask yourself could include:
- Are staff sufficiently trained in the protocols of the type of plant?
- Is the equipment regularly maintained, checked and cleaned?
- Is the appropriate Personal Protective Equipment being used?
- Control risks
Once the risk has been assessed, decide what action is needed, working from the most effective control down (section 36). Some examples of this can include:
- Eliminating the hazard completely
- Substituting the hazard with something safer
- Maintenance or repairs on equipment
- Training or re-training of staff to use plant
- Use of personal protective equipment
- Review
To ensure safe working conditions continue, make sure to record all control measures, records of training and any plans for changes. Review the assessment when a control is not working, before a change that could create a new risk, when a new hazard is identified, when consultation shows a review is needed, or when a health and safety representative requests one (section 38).
A worked example: a forklift in a warehouse
Step 1, identify: walking the warehouse, you spot pedestrians crossing the forklift route, a worn mast chain, and a new operator.
Step 2, assess: a collision with a person on foot is the worst case and could be fatal, and it is likely because the routes overlap. A chain failure is less likely but serious.
Step 3, control
| Hazard | Control | Where the law is |
|---|---|---|
| Forklift hits a pedestrian | Separate walkways from forklift routes, add a warning device, set speed limits | s 215(4) and (5) |
| Operator injured if it tips | Operator protective devices fitted, maintained and used | ss 214 and 215(2) |
| Unlicensed or untrained operator | Check the forklift licence; train on this site’s hazards | ss 81 and 39 |
| Worn chain or forks | Competent person inspects and maintains it as the manufacturer recommends | s 213 |
Step 4, review: record it on the Plant Risk Assessment Form and review it when the racking layout changes or after any near miss.
Frequently asked questions
What is a plant risk assessment?
A plant risk assessment is a written check of one item of plant: what could hurt someone, how likely and how serious that harm is, and what you will do about it. It is one way to show you are managing the risks of the plant.
Is a plant risk assessment a legal requirement in Queensland?
The legal duty is to manage the risks of plant (section 21 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld) and section 203 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)), by identifying hazards, eliminating or minimising the risks, keeping the controls effective and reviewing them (sections 34 to 38). The Regulation does not set a form or require a document called a plant risk assessment for plant in general, but specific rules for particular plant must be followed (section 33), and a written record helps show you have met your duties.
Who is responsible for a plant risk assessment?
The person with management or control of the plant at the workplace, which is usually the business that owns or runs it (section 21 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)). The Regulation does not set a particular qualification for the person who completes the assessment. It should be done with people who know the plant and how it is used, and workers must be consulted, so far as is reasonably practicable, when hazards are identified and risks assessed (sections 47 to 49 of the Act).
When is a plant risk assessment needed?
Before you commission plant, you must establish that it is, so far as is reasonably practicable, without risks to health and safety (section 204 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)). After that, review the assessment when a control is not working, before a change that could create a new risk, when a new hazard is identified, when consultation shows a review is needed, or when a health and safety representative asks for one (section 38).
What should a plant risk assessment include?
The plant and where and how it is used, the hazards, how likely and serious the harm could be, the controls already in place, the further controls you will add (working from the most effective, such as elimination or isolation, down to training and personal protective equipment, as set out in section 36 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)), who is responsible, and when it will be reviewed.
Where can I find more information about health and safety?
The Queensland Government website provides all information regarding work health and safety – check it out here!
Where Can I Find More Free Resources on Hazard and Risk Assessment?
Just need a Plant Hazard Risk Assessment Template? Download our Plant Risk Assessment Form here – You can use this template to conduct plant risk assessments for your workplace!
For free Work Health and Safety Templates for Construction and companies in Queensland – see our free WHS templates
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Check the current law or talk to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland for your situation.
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