Step to OHSAS 18001 Audit Process

Certification to the OHSAS standard implies the compliance of the prevailing health and safety management system within the organization with that of the set international standard accepted globally by all organizations.  It aims at the development of the healthy working environment where employees and clients feel safe to communicate without bothering about their life threatening measures.  The authentication to the standard can only be provided just after the organization successfully meet with the described criteria as mentioned by the ISO in its OHSAS 18001 standard.

What are the key stages that lead an organization to successfully achieve the accreditation within a limited time span with high accuracy? Here, we throw some light on these steps that lead to an organization to step up in the establishment of the occupational health and safety management system. Stages of the OHSAS 18001 Audit are discussed below:

1.       Development of a Health and Safety Management System: To control and regulate the health and safety issues within the closed boundary, it is essential that a supreme authority will guide and evaluate the working strategies of implementation of the health and safety measures within the organization. The effectiveness of the system will be defined before going for a certification process.

2.       Selection of Auditing Body: Audit of a particular standard will be done by the Auditor selected by the Auditing Body. Every organization needs to select a certifying body having authorization fo0r the accreditation of the OHSAS 18001 standard. 

3.       Pre-assessment by the Auditor: This process is an optional step carried by the Auditor to ensure whether the organizations ready for the certification audit or not. The process point out the limitation of the prevailing health and safety management system. It totally depended on the certifying body and the Auditor. 

4.       Gap Analysis: It is an optional step conducted by the organization itself. It is a self evaluation test by the organization senior management to find the strength and weakness of the Health and Safety Management system. 

5.       Improvement of the System: Just after the Gap analysis performed by the senior management of the organization. The organization takes effective measure to control the limitation of the organization.

6.       Reviewing the objectives, programs, outcomes and legal circumstances of the associated with the management system. 

7.       Stage I Audit: It is carried by the external Assessor to confirm the competence of the excising management system in the organization with that of the international standard.

8.       OH&S Audit: It involves the review of in the internal Audit process. This step prepares the organization for the Auditor’s visit.

9.       Step II Audit: This is the final OHSAS 18001  Saudi Arabia process performed by the Auditor on defined time. This is the certification audit that provides the final authorization with respect to the standard.