Accident Investigation Techniques

The Industrial Accident Investigation Techniques Manual This publication is intended for personnel involved in safety, management, safety committee members, university students, and others involved in industry. It is systematic in approach to conducting an investigation including generic techniques and procedures that will be beneficial regardless of the type of accident (e.g. automobile, industrial machinery, power tools, aircraft, and falls). The importance of finding all causes is stressed (e.g. direct cause, indirect cause, root cause, primary cause, and secondary cause). Causes must be coupled to specific recommendations that will prevent the accident from recurring in the future. This book also shows that a system of investigation follow-up must be instituted.

This new edition of a standard in the field is the most complete treatment available on modern methods of accident investigation. The investigation process is divided into three phases: preparation and planning, analytical methods and reporting, and corrective actions designed to prevent recurrence. Techniques discussed are general and can be applied to a wide range of industrial accidents. Topics covered include investigation concepts, the pitfalls of government intervention, legal aspects, multilinear events sequencing, and management oversight and risk tree (MORT). There is new material on the electronic and computer industries and on S-T-E-P accident investigation. A new chapter, ``A Generic Approach to Mishap Investigation,'' puts the entire process in perspective.

This publication is intended for personnel involved in safety, management, safety committee members, university students, and others involved in industry. It is systematic in approach to conducting an investigation including generic techniques and procedures that will be beneficial regardless of the type of accident (e.g. automobile, industrial machinery, power tools, aircraft, and falls). The importance of finding all causes is stressed (e.g. direct cause, indirect cause, root cause, primary cause, and secondary cause). Causes must be coupled to specific recommendations that will prevent the accident from recurring in the future. Th is book also shows that a system of investigation follow-up must be instituted. US Navy Captain (O-6) Nick Pacalo served as a pilot, safety specialist, and aircraft accident investigator during his twentyfive years in uniform. He served in Vietnam and in the Pentagon. Nick then became a Professor of Safety Science at Indiana University of Pennsylvania; serving as Department Chairman for three-years of that time. He is an authorized OSHA Outreach Instructor. He taught Accident Investigation and other safety courses at the OSHA Training Institute in Chicago for twenty-years. He is a Certified Safety Professional (CSP), holds a B.S. from Kent State, an M.S. from USC, and did Doctorial studies at West Virginia University. His son, Patrick, has a Ph.D. in History and is a Certified Paralegal. He has many publications and worked in safety at Georgetown University and in the U.S. Army Reserve.

Tried and true information on considerations for investigating workplace accidents.

This title was first published in 2002: This volume presents a method to investigate the human performance issues associated with an accident or incident, with a detailed discussion of the types of data to collect, and methods of collecting and analyzing data. The book should be of interest to accident/incident investigators, specialists in nuclear, chemical processing, aviation and other critical industries, safety experts, researchers and students in the field of human error, human factors, ergonomics and industrial engineering, and government agencies for regulation, health and safety.