Hazard Identification in Technical and Vocational Training institution by Job Safety Analysis in Zahedan

In institutions of technical and vocational training, trainees are asked to operate machinery and engage in high-risk manual activities that may expose them to a wide array of potential risks and safety hazards that are unknown to them. Therefore, Job Safety Analysis (JSA) was used in this study to identify potential hazards in one technical and vocational training institution in Zahedan.
This cross-sectional study was done in one of the technical and vocational training institutions in Zahedan in 2011. In this study, 9 technical or vocational workshop activities including carpentry, metal turnery, installation, milling, smooth, welding of building windows, pipe welding, diesel maintenance, and light vehicle maintenance were assessed based on their importance and frequency. All 53 craft vocations were divided to 210 specific sequence steps and hazards of each step were determined using check list, available documents, observations and interviews. For the purpose of risk identification, MIL-STD-882 E matrix table was used. In the final stage, corrective and controlling measures for all hazards were proposed in the special sheet. Excel 2013 software was used for data analysis and interpretation.
524 hazards were determined by JSA. Although it is always difficult to report with certainty that there is no risk, the overall results of this study indicated that there was no risk involved at an unacceptable level. In general, hazards were found in the following: 65 hazard risks level were found to be serious, 257 hazards risk level were found to be acceptable but needed to be revised and 202 hazard risk level were found to be low. Carpentry, metal turnery and installation with 81, 75, 72 hazards, respectively, were the most hazardous technical working activities.
Considering the fact that carpentry, metal turnery and installation exist in almost any occupational environment, it is crucial to provide advice on preventive and protective measures (i.e. health and safety guidelines and detailed Codes of Practice), and to insist upon on-the-job training for trainees to reduce the level of risk arising from activities performed in the training centers and workplaces.