It is increasingly acknowledged that hours of work limitations (for example flight time limitations for pilots and cabin crew, or the European Working Time Directive) are not effective at controlling the risk of fatigue in all circumstances. It is about increasing the organisation’s ability to make risk-based decisions, as well as reassuring all stakeholders that a known threat to operational safety is effectively managed. To ensure that fatigue is controlled, safety critical industries around the world are being recommended to implement elements of effective Fatigue Risk Management (FRM) alongside prescriptive hours of work limitations.
Building and implementing effective FRM is not just about meeting regulatory requirements and best practice. It is about increasing the organisation’s ability to make risk-based decision-making as well as giving all stakeholders that it is managing a known threat to operational safety. In some environments, for example commercial air transport, FRM approved by the Regulator (or an ‘FRMS’) can be used to support an application to work outside specified prescribed hours of duty limitations, so long as fatigue is controlled at least as well as operating within the regulations.
We work closely with you to implement best practice elements of FRM, matching against the recommended processes, procedures, risk assessment and mitigations for your industry, and to ensure that they fit within your current management system. We help support a number of sectors, including aviation, energy, mining, rail and road.
Often, we begin with our diagnostic service, to identify strengths and gaps in your current processes and procedures to control fatigue.
A research study or safety case may also be undertaken as part of building FRM, to collect specific data relevant to your operation, inform the risk mitigations, and/or support an application to the regulator to work outside prescriptive hours of work limitations.
Typically, our service will include building the following assets to enable effective FRM, and integrating them into your management system:
