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IG1-0059-ENG-OBE-QP-V1 Feb26 © NEBOSH 2026

MANAGEMENT OF HEALTH AND SAFETY

UNIT NG1 / IG1:

For: NEBOSH International General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety and NEBOSH Interview Preparation UK

SCENARIO

Precision Pans (PP) manufactures stainless-steel cooking pans. There are 300 workers employed at PP’s manufacturing site. The managing director leads the management team that includes a health and safety manager (HSM), department managers, and production supervisors. Manufacturing has taken place on this site for 70 years; the main manufacturing building is old and most of the equipment is manually-operated.

Manufacturing process

PP purchases round, stainless-steel discs from a supplier. On site, batches of discs are pressed around a mould into the desired pan shape in a high-pressure press. The moulds can be swapped to produce different-sized pans. This process is followed by: trimming excess metal from the pans; grinding to remove rough edges; washing to remove lubricant; and polishing to achieve a smooth surface. Handles are then riveted in place. After quality control inspections, the pans are packaged and stored in the on-site warehouse until they are sent to retailers.

Due to recent health concerns in the media about non-stick coatings on pans, there has been an increase in demand for PP’s stainless-steel pans. Therefore, the site is working at full capacity.

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Health and safety arrangements

The manufacturing process of stainless-steel pans is considered to be a high-risk activity and health and safety is prioritised at the site. Four years ago, PP’s formal health and safety management system became certified to ISO 45001. This has brought many benefits, including a better understanding of risks, and improved controls and procedures. There have been no serious incidents on-site since the certification.

The HSM considers the internal audits to be one of the greatest successes of the ISO 45001 certification. A written internal audit procedure describes how audits are carried out, and links to a schedule that covers all areas of the site, and standard requirements. Audit findings are discussed quarterly by the health and safety committee, and reviewed annually at a senior management review meeting.

Ten volunteer workers have been trained as internal auditors. With their increased knowledge of health and safety, and understanding of site operations across the different departments, these workers now act as safety champions. As they audit different departments, independent from their own, the internal auditors often share their knowledge with other workers. This has helped them to understand the challenges that other departments face, breaking down communication barriers and enabling various departments to collaborate better. While the auditors are proactive in looking for improvements during the audits, they are careful not to blame individuals for any non-conformances found. The managers of the departments being audited work together with the auditors to propose and carry out corrective actions. This has led to improvements not just in health and safety, but has also made other organisational processes more efficient.

Workers are now more active in sharing their concerns and ideas, which has led to a suggestion scheme being set up. Good ideas are recognised by the management team. Information on improvements is shared on the noticeboard, alongside details of the health and safety management system, including the health and safety policy statement.

The new apprentice

PP has recruited a new apprentice to work in the manufacturing department. On their first day, the apprentice is assigned to Supervisor A, who is an experienced supervisor and will be responsible for providing the apprentice’s induction and job-specific training. Supervisor A has an induction checklist to follow that includes explaining safety rules, risk assessments, and showing the apprentice around the whole site. Supervisor A gives the apprentice ear defenders and informs them that these must be worn in the manufacturing area at all times. The apprentice does not ask any questions during the induction as they find all of it confusing, and they do not want to embarrass themselves. They also miss some of the information, as wearing the ear defenders makes it difficult to hear what Supervisor A is telling them. At the end of the induction, both workers sign and date the checklist.

The apprentice will be working on an old power press in the manufacturing department (a large work area with many machines). There are sound-absorbing panels suspended from the ceiling, but there are large gaps where some panels are missing, and the area is very noisy.

Supervisor A explains the task to the apprentice: a stainless-steel disc is placed in the power press and two buttons are used to operate the press. Supervisor A points out a blue sign showing that ear defenders must be worn. The apprentice notices some paperwork by the power press. Supervisor A shouts over the noise that “this is a risk assessment, something that the managers do to keep themselves legal, but it is not important for you”. Supervisor A then demonstrates the task and watches while the apprentice presses two pans.

Supervisor A is in a hurry to complete the training as one of the machines on the other side of the manufacturing department is broken and needs to be repaired. This breakdown is delaying the production process, and a large pile of discs is collecting at the broken machine. Supervisor A leaves the apprentice at the power press to get on with the work.

The apprentice finds that their ear defenders fit badly and are uncomfortable, so they check that no-one is watching before removing them. The power press is a big, dangerous-looking machine, and the apprentice does not feel confident using it, so they work very slowly. When Supervisor A returns 30 minutes later, the apprentice has only pressed four of the discs. Supervisor A is angry and shouts at the apprentice that if they do not work faster, they will not pass their probation period.

Later that evening, the apprentice is unable to sleep as they have a headache and a buzzing in their ears. The next day, although they feel tired, the buzzing and headache have gone. When they arrive at work, they tell Supervisor A about their symptoms. Supervisor A records this in the internal incident reporting book and notifies the HSM. Supervisor A and the apprentice then discuss the importance of hearing protection. The apprentice tries different styles of ear defenders and finds some that are comfortable. Now that the apprentice better understands, they say that they will take care to always use the hearing protection.

Construction activities

PP owns a derelict site next to the existing manufacturing building. It plans to build a second factory here and install new, automated machinery that will be quieter than the existing machines. This will enable PP to double production output.

A qualified architect with 20 years’ experience has created plans for the new factory, and received the necessary permissions to start construction. The architect has confirmed that the site is grassland; an underground water pipe crosses this land, along with overhead electric cables leading to the current factory. Information on these is included in the pre-construction documents. The HSM will contact the utilities companies to confirm that they are made safe before work starts.

The HSM considers three local contractors for the construction work. The HSM invites representatives from the contractors to visit the site and discuss the project. Each contractor submits proposals that include costings and details of how they will carry out the work. These proposals include roles and responsibilities, risk assessments, method statements, qualifications, and how they will report and investigate any incidents; all contractors plan to fence off the site to prevent unauthorised access. The HSM then checks their customer references.

Based on the information submitted, the HSM selects Contractor A. The HSM confirms the budget with the management team. Contractor A develops a construction phase plan that is approved by the HSM. They will start work in six weeks, and construction is expected to take twelve weeks, as it is a simple, prefabricated building. A contingency time of two weeks has been factored in for unexpected delays, such as weather conditions. After the building is complete, the new manufacturing machines will arrive on site for installation. The HSM notifies the labour inspectorate about the project.

The project team from Contractor A will consist of ten construction workers led by a full-time site supervisor. Before work starts, the HSM has a pre-construction meeting with the contractor’s site supervisor, and then provides all of the contractor workers with a full site induction. The contractor workers will be given restricted access to the main manufacturing building to use the welfare facilities just inside the main entrance. They are told not to enter the manufacturing area. Each morning, the HSM will have a meeting with the site supervisor to discuss progress and raise any concerns. In addition to regular site inspections by the contractors, the HSM plans to carry out unscheduled inspections of site activities to check that the safety rules are being followed.

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Task 1: Workers` responsibilities in the workplace