Safety & Environmental Engineering

Under UK law, all employers have a duty of care to their employees, the general public and the wider environment. This includes, but is not limited to, an obligation to manage the Risk to Life associated with operation of any equipment. In accordance with general guidance provided by the Health and Safety Executive all companies and employees must discharge this duty by ensuring that all identified risks to life are reduced to levels that are As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) and tolerable, unless legislation, regulations or Policy imposes a more stringent standard.

Contractors who supply Products, Services and/or Systems (PSS) to the Ministry of Defence are subject to legal duties, which may vary with the place of manufacture and supply or operation.

The requirements are grouped into three main areas as follows:

  1. Safety Management. The requirements for organisational and general processes to ensure that Risk to Life is managed effectively.
  2. Safety Engineering. The requirements for guiding the design of a PSS so that it can be operated safely, on its own, as part of a wider system, or in a system of systems, and providing evidence that this has been done.
  3. Safety In-Service. The requirements for managing safety where a contractor is supporting the customer by providing a service, which may include placing the customer in a position to discharge its obligations with regard to the management of Risk to Life associated with the in-service use of Products, Services and/or Systems (PSS).

The following standards are recognised for good practice.

    1. AERC - Airborne Equipment Release Certificate
    2. ALWRC - Air Launched Weapon Release Certificate
    3. ARP4754 - Guidelines for Development of Civil Aircraft and Systems
    4. ASEMS - DE&S Acquisition Safety and Environmental Management System
    5. DEF STAN 00-55 - Requirements for Safety of Programmable Elements (PE) in Defence Systems
    6. DO-178 - Software Considerations in Airborne Systems and Equipment Certification
    7. IET Blue Book - Competence Criteria for Safety-Related System Practitioners
    8. IET COPISA - Code of practice for independent safety assessors
    9. ISO 26262 - Road Vehicles - Functional Safety
    10. MAA02 - MAA Master Glossary
    11. MIL-STD-882 - Department of Defense Standard Practice - System Safety
    12. POSMS DE&S - Project Oriented Safety Management System
    13. White Book - An Introduction to Safety Management in the MOD
    14. Safety & Environmental Case Reviews (S&ECR)