MODEL QUESTION PAPER 4- UNIT A-MODEL 1F

Question 1. A multi-site organisation has recently been audited. This has highlighted
deficiencies in worker involvement in health and safety matters.
Outline recommendations to assist the employer to effectively consult with the workers on
health and safety matters. (10)

Question 2 Accidents and incidents disrupt an organisation’s normal operations, adding to

the organisation’s operating costs.
(a) Outline potential sources of financial loss arising from accidents and incidents. (5)
(b) Outline benefits to the organisation of effective health and safety management. (5)

Question 3 (a) In relation to a binding contractual agreement give the meaning of:
(i) express terms; (2)
(ii) implied terms. (3)
(b) In relation to a new contract outline the health and safety information which should be
stated in the contract terms. (5)

Question 4 (a) Outline TWO principles of the following risk management strategies AND give
ONE example of EACH strategy:
(i) risk transfer; (3)
(ii) risk reduction. (3)
(b) When applying a risk reduction strategy, outline factors that affect the choice of control
measures. (4)

Question 5 A maintenance worker was asphyxiated when working in an empty fuel tank. A
subsequent investigation found that the worker had been operating without a permit-to-work.
(a) Outline why a permit-to-work would be considered necessary in these circumstances. (3)
(b) Outline the possible reasons why the permit-to-work procedure was not followed on this
occasion. (7)

Question 6 The reliability of a safety critical system depends on a single component.

(a) Outline ways of reducing the likelihood of failure of the component. (4)
(b) Outline additional ways to increase the reliability of the safety critical system. (6)
Section B – three from five questions to be attempted

Question 7 (a) Outline the technique of fault tree analysis. (4)

(b) Outline the limitations of fault tree analysis. (4)

(c) An office is protected with an automatic fire detection and alarm system. A number of false alarms
have been activated. A false alarm can be triggered by sunlight striking a UV flame detector, dust
obscuring a smoke detector or by a failure of the primary power supply. The primary power is normally
supplied by connection to the mains electricity. If this should fail, a back-up generator activates to
supply the electricity. The expected probabilities of the causes of the false alarms are shown below.

Cause of false alarm Probability

Sunlight striking a UV flame 0.2

detector

Dust obscuring a smoke detector 0.1

Power failure 0.1

Back-up generator does not start 0.05

(i) Construct a simple fault tree AND calculate the probability of a false alarm. Show calculations in
EACH case. (8)
(ii) Identify the main cause of false alarms. (1)
(iii) Outline remedial actions that could minimise false alarms. (3)

Question 8 A worker was on an elevated working platform when it was struck by a contractor’s
vehicle. The platform overturned, the worker fell and was seriously injured. An initial report
recommends further investigation.
(a) Outline why the accident should be investigated. (4)
(b) Outline steps that should be followed when investigating the accident. (10)
(c) Outline the benefits of conducting an accident investigation. (6)
Question 9 An organisation should carry out a risk assessment before developing a safe
system of work.
(a) Outline the factors that should be considered when carrying out a risk assessment. (10)
(b) Give the meaning of the term ‘safe system of work’. (2)
(c) Outline the issues to be addressed to effectively implement a safe system of work. (8)

Question 10 (a) In relation to the improvement of health and safety in organisations, outline
the meaning of:
(i) corporate probation; (2)
(ii) adverse publicity orders; (3)
(iii) punitive damages. (3)
(b) Outline how the International Labour Organisation can influence health and safety
standards in different countries. (7)
(c) Outline how legislation is able to improve health and safety in the workplace. (5)

Question 11 A fuel storage depot situated close to a residential housing area contains a
vessel for the storage of liquefied petroleum gas. It is estimated that a major release of the
contents of the vessel could occur once every one hundred years (frequency = 0.01/yr).
Such a release, together with the presence of an ignition source (probability, p=0.1), could
lead to a flash fire or a vapour cloud explosion on site. Alternatively, if the wind is in a certain
direction (p=0.7) and there is stable wind speed of less than 8 ms-1 (p=0.5), a vapour cloud
may drift to the residential housing area where itcould be ignited (p=0.8).

(a) Using the data provided, construct an event tree to calculate the expected frequency of
ire/explosion BOTH on site AND in the nearby residential housing area. (10)

(b) Comment on the significance of the results obtained in (a). (4)

(c) Outline, with examples, a hierarchy of control options to minimize the risks. (6)