🔍 HIRA – Hazard Identification & Risk Assessment

Identify the Hazard. Assess the Risk. Control It Before It Causes Harm.

The HIRA – Hazard Identification & Risk Assessment Course is designed to provide workers, supervisors, engineers, safety professionals, managers, and project teams with practical knowledge to systematically identify workplace hazards, assess associated risks, and implement effective control measures.

Participants learn how to look beyond obvious hazards, understand who may be exposed, evaluate the potential consequences, and select appropriate controls before an incident occurs. Through workplace scenarios, practical exercises, risk-assessment examples, and interactive activities, the course develops a proactive safety mindset and strengthens the ability to make informed decisions before work begins.

🔍 What You’ll Learn

⚠️ Hazard Identification

Learn how to recognise physical, chemical, electrical, mechanical, ergonomic, environmental, and process-related hazards.

📊 Risk Assessment

Understand how to evaluate the likelihood and potential consequence of identified hazards.

🛡️ Risk Control

Learn how to select suitable controls using a structured approach.

👥 Who May Be Exposed?

Understand how workers, contractors, visitors, and other people can be affected by workplace hazards.

📝 HIRA Documentation

Learn how to record hazards, risks, controls, responsibilities, and follow-up actions.

🔄 Continuous Improvement

Understand how HIRA can be reviewed and updated when workplace conditions, processes, equipment, or activities change.

🛡️ Key Training Areas

Participants are introduced to:

• 🔍 Hazard identification

• 📊 Risk assessment

• ⚠️ Risk evaluation

• 🛡️ Risk control

• 🏭 Workplace hazard analysis

• ⚙️ Machinery and equipment hazards

• ⚡ Electrical hazards

• 🧪 Chemical hazards

• 🔥 Fire hazards

• 🏗️ Construction hazards

• 🕳️ Confined-space hazards

• 🚜 Material-handling hazards

• 🏋️ Manual-handling hazards

• 🧍 Ergonomic hazards

• 🚧 Work-at-height hazards

• 🔥 Hot-work hazards

• 🌱 Environmental hazards

• 👷 Human factors

• 📝 HIRA documentation

• 🔄 Control monitoring

• 📈 Continuous improvement

🔧 Practical HIRA Training

Identify → Assess → Control → Monitor → Improve

Participants can gain practical exposure to:

01 — DEFINE THE ACTIVITY
Understand the work activity, process, equipment, materials, people, and workplace conditions.

02 — BREAK DOWN THE TASK
Divide complex activities into logical steps so hazards can be identified systematically.

03 — IDENTIFY HAZARDS
Determine what could cause injury, illness, property damage, environmental harm, or operational loss.

04 — IDENTIFY WHO MAY BE EXPOSED
Consider employees, contractors, visitors, operators, maintenance personnel, and other affected persons.

05 — ASSESS THE RISK
Evaluate the likelihood and potential consequence using the organisation’s approved risk-assessment methodology.

06 — SELECT CONTROLS
Choose appropriate measures to eliminate or reduce the identified risk.

07 — DOCUMENT THE HIRA
Record findings, controls, responsibilities, and required actions.

08 — REVIEW & IMPROVE
Monitor effectiveness and update the assessment when conditions change.

⚠️ Hazard Identification

Don’t Just Look at What Is Wrong — Ask What Could Go Wrong

Participants learn to identify hazards associated with:

⚙️ Mechanical

Moving machinery, rotating parts, pinch points, crushing hazards, sharp edges, and stored energy.

⚡ Electrical

Electric shock, arc-flash hazards, damaged cables, exposed conductors, and unsafe electrical equipment.

🧪 Chemical

Toxic substances, corrosive materials, flammable chemicals, vapours, fumes, and spills.

🔥 Fire & Explosion

Ignition sources, combustible materials, flammable substances, hot work, and uncontrolled energy.

🏗️ Physical

Work at height, falling objects, confined spaces, slips, trips, noise, vibration, and temperature extremes.

🏋️ Ergonomic

Manual handling, repetitive work, awkward postures, excessive force, and poor workstation design.

👷 Human Factors

Fatigue, inadequate training, communication failures, procedural errors, distractions, and unsafe behaviours.

🔍 HIRA Hazard Identification Questions

Ask Before You Start

❓ WHAT CAN GO WRONG?
Identify possible unwanted events.

❓ HOW CAN IT HAPPEN?
Understand the potential causes.

❓ WHO CAN BE AFFECTED?
Identify exposed people.

❓ WHAT COULD HAPPEN?
Consider potential consequences.

❓ WHAT CONTROLS ALREADY EXIST?
Identify existing safeguards.

❓ ARE THE CONTROLS EFFECTIVE?
Determine whether additional measures are required.

📊 Risk Assessment

Turn Hazards Into Meaningful Risk Decisions

Participants learn the basic relationship:

Risk = Likelihood × Consequence

📈 LIKELIHOOD
How likely is the hazardous event or exposure to occur?

💥 CONSEQUENCE
How serious could the outcome be?

📊 RISK LEVEL
What is the resulting level of risk according to the organisation’s approved methodology?

Note: Risk-rating scales and acceptance criteria should follow the organisation’s established risk-assessment procedure and applicable requirements.

🛡️ Hierarchy of Controls

Control the Hazard at Its Source

Participants learn the widely used hierarchy of controls:

🥇 01 — ELIMINATION
Remove the hazard completely.

↓

🔄 02 — SUBSTITUTION
Replace the hazard with a safer alternative where reasonably practicable.

↓

⚙️ 03 — ENGINEERING CONTROLS
Physically control the hazard or separate people from it.

↓

📋 04 — ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS
Use procedures, training, scheduling, signage, supervision, and other organisational controls.

↓

🦺 05 — PPE
Use appropriate personal protective equipment as the final layer of protection.

The Best Control Is Usually the One That Removes or Reduces the Hazard at Its Source.

📝 HIRA Worksheet

Turn Safety Thinking Into a Clear Action Plan

A typical HIRA worksheet may include:

🏭 HIRA for Different Work Activities

Every Task Has Its Own Risk Profile

Participants learn to apply HIRA principles to:

🏗️ Construction
Excavation, lifting, scaffolding, work at height, and site activities.

🏭 Manufacturing
Machinery, production processes, chemicals, maintenance, and material handling.

⚙️ Engineering & Maintenance
Electrical work, mechanical maintenance, isolation, tools, and equipment.

🧪 Chemical Operations
Chemical handling, transfer, storage, exposure, and spill risks.

📦 Warehousing & Logistics
Forklifts, loading/unloading, storage, stacking, and pedestrian movement.

🔥 Hot Work
Welding, gas cutting, grinding, sparks, heat, and fire hazards.

🕳️ Confined Spaces
Atmospheric hazards, isolation, access, rescue, and emergency response.

🔄 Dynamic HIRA

Risk Can Change When the Work Changes

Participants learn why HIRA should be reviewed when there are changes to:

• Work methods

• Equipment

• Materials

• Personnel

• Process conditions

• Workplace layout

• Weather or environmental conditions

• Shift arrangements

• Contractors

• Production activities

• Emergency conditions

New Conditions Can Create New Hazards. Reassess Before Proceeding.

👷 Job Safety Analysis & HIRA

Understand the Difference — Use Both Effectively

🔍 HIRA
Provides a broader approach to identifying hazards and assessing risks associated with workplace activities, processes, or operations.

📋 JSA / JHA
Focuses more specifically on breaking a particular job into steps, identifying hazards at each step, and establishing controls.

Both Approaches Help Teams Think About Risk Before Work Begins.

🚨 HIRA & Emergency Preparedness

A good risk assessment should consider potential emergency scenarios such as:

🔥 FIRE
What could ignite? Who could be exposed? What controls exist?

⚡ ELECTRICAL INCIDENT
What electrical hazards exist? How can energy be isolated?

🧪 CHEMICAL RELEASE
What could be released? How could exposure occur?

💨 GAS RELEASE
What atmospheric hazards could develop?

🏗️ FALL / COLLAPSE
What could cause a fall, structural failure, or falling-object incident?

🚑 MEDICAL EMERGENCY
What emergency response and first-aid arrangements are available?

🔍 HIRA Workplace Inspection

See the Hazard Where the Work Actually Happens

Participants learn to combine documentation with workplace observation:

👀 OBSERVE
Watch the actual activity.

🗣️ ASK
Talk to the people performing the work.

📋 REVIEW
Check procedures and existing risk assessments.

🔍 IDENTIFY
Compare actual conditions with expected controls.

📊 ASSESS
Determine whether the risk is adequately controlled.

🛠️ IMPROVE
Recommend practical improvements.

📝 HIRA Action Management

Identifying a Risk Is Only the Beginning

🔍 FIND
Identify the hazard.

↓

📋 RECORD
Document the risk clearly.

↓

📊 PRIORITISE
Determine the appropriate action based on risk.

↓

🛡️ CONTROL
Implement suitable controls.

↓

👀 VERIFY
Check whether the controls are working.

↓

✅ CLOSE
Document completion.

↓

🔄 REVIEW
Reassess when conditions change.

🎯 Learning Outcomes

After completing the course, participants will be able to:

• Understand the fundamentals of HIRA.

• Differentiate between hazards and risks.

• Identify common workplace hazards.

• Break activities into logical task steps.

• Identify people who may be exposed.

• Understand likelihood and consequence.

• Apply an appropriate risk-assessment methodology.

• Understand the hierarchy of controls.

• Select suitable risk-control measures.

• Prepare and use HIRA worksheets.

• Identify when a HIRA should be reviewed.

• Understand dynamic and task-based risk assessment.

• Document hazards, risks, and corrective actions.

• Monitor the effectiveness of controls.

• Support workplace inspections and safety observations.

• Contribute to proactive risk management and safety improvement.

👷 Who Can Attend?

This course is suitable for:

Safety Officers • HSE Professionals • Engineers • Supervisors • Managers • Project Teams • Maintenance Personnel • Production Personnel • Construction Teams • Contractors • Safety Committee Members • Workers Involved in Risk Assessment

🧠 Training Approach

Learn → Identify → Assess → Control → Verify → Improve

The course combines:

📚 Classroom Learning
Fundamental HIRA concepts and risk-assessment principles.

🔍 Hazard Identification Exercises
Practical identification of workplace hazards.

📊 Risk Assessment Exercises
Scenario-based likelihood and consequence evaluation.

🛡️ Control Selection Exercises
Applying the hierarchy of controls to realistic hazards.

📋 HIRA Worksheet Exercises
Developing structured risk assessments.

🏭 Workplace Case Studies
Analysing hazards across construction, manufacturing, logistics, maintenance, and industrial environments.

👥 Interactive Discussions
Learning how different teams perceive and control workplace risks.

🔄 HIRA Risk Management Cycle

Think Before the Incident

🔍 01 — IDENTIFY
Find hazards associated with the activity.

↓

👥 02 — IDENTIFY EXPOSURE
Determine who could be affected.

↓

📊 03 — ASSESS
Evaluate likelihood and potential consequence.

↓

🛡️ 04 — CONTROL
Select appropriate risk-control measures.

↓

📝 05 — DOCUMENT
Record the assessment and required actions.

↓

👀 06 — IMPLEMENT
Put the agreed controls into practice.

↓

🔎 07 — VERIFY
Check whether controls are effective.

↓

🔄 08 — REVIEW
Update the assessment when conditions change.

↓

📈 09 — IMPROVE
Use lessons learned to strengthen future risk assessments.

🏆 Key Benefits

For Workers

Develop the ability to recognise hazards and make safer decisions before starting work.

For Supervisors

Improve task planning, hazard communication, control implementation, and safety monitoring.

For Safety Professionals

Strengthen structured hazard identification, risk assessment, and control-selection skills.

For Managers

Improve proactive risk management, accountability, and safety decision-making.

For Organisations

Support proactive hazard management, reduce uncontrolled workplace risks, strengthen safety planning, and build a stronger safety culture.

⭐ Why HIRA Matters

Every workplace contains hazards, but a hazard becomes a serious concern when people are exposed without adequate controls.

HIRA provides a structured way to identify hazards, understand potential consequences, assess risk, and implement appropriate controls before an incident occurs.

See the Hazard. Understand the Risk. Control It Before It Causes Harm.

🔍 HIRA – Hazard Identification & Risk Assessment

Identify the Hazard. Assess the Risk. Control the Future.

Develop the practical knowledge required to systematically identify workplace hazards, assess risks, select effective controls, and support continuous improvement in workplace safety.