A Hazard Analysis of Human Factors in Safety-critical Systems Engineering

Chambers, L.

Safety incident studies often cite human factors as a major cause of accidents. At Bhopal in 1984 human error - the failure to follow safe operating procedures - instigated the deaths of thousands of people from cyanide poisoning. In this case, human factors introduced a common cause fault that disabled four separate safety measures designed to prevent cyanide gas from venting to the atmosphere. From this and other case studies I have taken the view that the competence and motivation of people responsible for the design and operation of safety-critical systems is our first and last line of defence against loss of life and property. The circumstances and influences that cause people to embrace or ignore best practice in safety-critical systems engineering invites detailed analysis. In this paper I assert that lack of competence and safety awareness in developers and operators is a hazard that can have catastrophic consequences. However, by taking a risk management approach we can reduce the severity and frequency of accidents by developing insights into why individuals and organisations might choose to adopt international standards for best practice in safety-related systems engineering, and why they might not.

Cite as: Chambers, L. (2005). A Hazard Analysis of Human Factors in Safety-critical Systems Engineering. In Proc. Tenth Australian Workshop on Safety-Related Programmable Systems (SCS 2005), Sydney, Australia. CRPIT, 55. Cant, T., Ed. ACS. 27-41.

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