A risk assessment tool for the ship recycling industry

Ship recycling operations expose workers to a wide range of hazards that can cause a large number of incidents and accidents resulting in ill health, injuries and even death. In order to facilitate effective risk reduction within ship recycling yards, there is a need to develop an appropriate risk assessment method that is supportive and simple to use. In addition, the utilised method should involve end-user participation which is very important in assisting the realisation and acceptance of required health and safety measures. In this paper, a new bespoke risk assessment methodology for ship recycling, ‘The Three Step Risk Assessment Method for Ship Recycling’ (Three Step Method) will be presented which fulfils the criteria’s mentioned above. This paper will document the Three Step Method’s development and explain its various steps of implementation before introducing a case study and feedback of a practical application of the method. Finally, the conclusions that the Three Step Method provides a proven useful dialogue in the identification, assessment and mitigation of hazards and that the method can be easily implemented in the ship repair industry will be made.