Incident and Near Miss Reporting

Department: Safety.

Topic: Incident and Near Miss Reporting.

Process: Koester Process for Reporting for an Incident and Near Miss.

Objective

To understand the difference between an accident and a near miss, and the Koester reporting process required for these two similar, but different events.

Background

What is the difference between an accident and a near miss?

1.      Incidents that almost caused an injury or fatality are labeled as near-misses. 

2.      Incidents that resulted in an injury or fatality are called accidents.

What are some examples of near misses?

1.      Mishandling of chemicals or hazardous materials.

2.      Transportation close calls.

3.      Equipment malfunctions.

4.      Slips, trips, and falls without injury.

5.      Narrow escapes from workplace hazards

What are two common causes of a near miss?

Near misses are caused by the same kinds of workplace hazards that cause actual accidents: — Unsafe conditions, and/or — Unsafe acts. Of the two, unsafe acts cause many more near misses and accidents than unsafe conditions.

What is a near miss on the jobsite?

1.      A near miss is an event that could have been a workplace accident had things played out differently.

2.      While Near Miss Reporting isn't required by federal OSHA, but it is a common safety management practice, it is required by Koester for record, review, and future mitigation.

3.      Keep a record of—and respond to—close call events to reduce the likelihood an injury or illness will occur.

What is OSHA near miss reporting?

1.      Workers must report all workplace incidents, hazardous conditions, near misses, and property and environmental damage to their immediate supervisor as soon as possible.

What is the procedure to close a near miss?

1.      Report the near miss incident, no matter how small or who it happens to.

2.      Make sure the scene of the incident is secured as fast as possible.

3.      Communicate the incident to supervisors and the safety department.

4.      Fill out a near miss report with the exact details of the incident.

Things to Consider

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The goal is to be proactive and avoid all incidents, near misses and accidents, and that begins with:

1.       Pre-construction start up meetings, completed with the key trades.

2.       Pre-roofing conference, if applicable, completed before roofing starts.

3.       Job Site Specific Safety Plan (JSSSP) completed and posted before the start of the project.

4.       Job Site Safety Inspection Report (JSSIR) completed weekly.

5.       Procore - Inspections.

6.       Procore - Daily Logs.

7.       Procore - Jobsite Photograph Documentation.

Prerequisites

Before you can complete an Incident Report:

1.       You must have your project set up in Procore to complete an Incident Report, for an Accident or a Near Miss.

2.       Once completed in Procore, the Safety Director will contact you for your notes and/or a completed paper copy of the Incident Report.

Steps

In the event you have an Accident or a Near Miss on your job site, follow the Koester reporting procedures.

Emergency or Serious Accident – see JSSSP:

1.       The first person to witness an emergency should call 911, if needed.

2.       Contact Koester Construction’s site superintendent.

3.       Superintendent, unless injured, will take the following steps:

a.       If necessary, we will see that employees are evacuated to designated areas and head count taken, if needed. All persons on-site shall meet at designated area – Rally Point A & B: Outside of job trailer or Koester superintendent vehicle.

b.       Assess any minor or serious medical problems and provide aid if trained to do so until emergency medical services arrive on-site.

c.       Protect emergency sites from traffic and try to stop any further injuries or damage.

d.       Shall meet emergency response personnel at the jobsite entrance to direct emergency services to the necessary area of needed aid. If KCCI superintendent is unable to meet emergency response personnel, superintendent shall designate person or persons to meet emergency response at the jobsite entrance to direct emergency services to the necessary area of needed aid.

e.       See that Koester personnel are contacted as needed, per the Koester emergency response contact list.

f.        See that area is made safe for traffic before allowing re-entry or notifying “All Clear.”

g.       In case of a fire, take the nearest exit to the building; go to the designated evacuation area.  All people on site shall meet at designated area: Outside of job trailer or Koester superintendent vehicle, unless fire is prohibiting access, then designated area will be on east side of South Linn Street in field.

4.       In case of a tornado, take cover in the lowest level of building or site.

5.       After all immediate life safety needs have been addressed, contact the following:

a.       Koester Construction Main Office: 515-986-5500

b.       Safety Director: Andres Rodriguez: 515-240-6446

c.       Koester Field Manager

d.       Koester Project Manager.

6.       Start the documentation process by completing an Incident Report:

a.       In Procore, navigate to your project’s Project Management column.

b.       Scroll down the column and click on Incidents, then click on the orange + Create, in the upper right-hand corner.

c.       Fill out this report to the best of your ability and click on the orange + Create, in the bottom right-hand corner.

d.       Once you have created the Incident Report, you can now access and complete the following, if applicable

1.       Incident Records.

2.       Witness Statements.

3.       Actions.

e.       Your reports should cover the five (5) W’s:

1.       Who.

2.       What.

3.       Where.

4.       When.

5.       Why (if known).

f.        Photographs, take lots of them. Why?

1.       “A picture is worth a thousand words”.

2.       Taking photos is fast, you are there, time may be limited, it may be your one and only opportunity – paperwork can follow.

3.       If 5-10 are good, take 20-30.

4.       Take from all angles, close ups, far away, left to right.

5.       You can never take too many pictures.

6.       It is hard to dispute a photo – it tells the story.

Near Miss:

1.       Start the documentation process by completing an Incident Report:

a.       In Procore, navigate to your project’s Project Management column.

b.       Scroll down the column and click on Incidents, then click on the orange + Create, in the upper right-hand corner.

c.       Fill out this report to the best of your ability and click on the orange + Create, in the bottom right-hand corner.

d.       Once you have created the Incident Report, you can now access and complete the following, if applicable:

1.       Incident Records.

2.       Witness Statements.

3.       Actions.

e.       Your reports should cover the five (5) W’s:

1.       Who.

2.       What.

3.       Where.

4.       When.

5.       Why (if known).

f.        Photographs, take lots of them. Why?

1.       “A picture is worth a thousand words”.

2.       Taking photos is fast, you are there, time may be limited, it may be your one and only opportunity – paperwork can follow.

3.       If 5-10 are good, take 20-30.

4.       Take from all angles, close ups, far away, left to right.

5.       You can never take too many pictures.

6.       It is hard to dispute a photo – it tells the story.