Management of Change

Company tierIn the app: /moc

Management of Change is the register for changes to equipment, a process, materials, a procedure, the organization or the site layout: each is written up, its hazards reviewed, and approved by named people in order before it goes ahead. We start every change with a pre-start checklist written to the OSHA standards (the items 29 CFR 1910.119(l) lists and the pre-startup safety review in 1910.119(i)), and it cannot be marked implemented until the required items are done or marked not applicable with a reason.

1.Request a change

Open Management of Change and press + New Change.
Give it a title, the kind of change, the job site and area, and the planned start. Tick Temporary change and set the end date if it is not permanent.
Describe what is changing, and why: the reason and what it is based on, such as drawings, specifications, the vendor's data or an engineering review.
Under Hazard Review, press + Add Hazard for each hazard the change could bring in or make worse, with its controls and a rating of low, medium, high or critical before and after them. Link a risk assessment or JHA if one covers the work.
Add the approvers in the order they should decide, then press Save Draft. You cannot name yourself as an approver.

2.Send it for approval and decide

On the draft, press Send for Approval. The first approver gets an email with a link.
The approver whose turn it is sees Your Decision at the top of the change. Approve, or Reject with a reason; each approver decides in turn and the next one is emailed.
When the last approver approves, the requester is emailed. A rejection goes back to the requester with the reason; press Reopen as Draft to change it and send it again.
Changes waiting on you show under Waiting on Me in the register and in your reminders.

3.Work the pre-start checklist

The checklist on each change starts with seven items: technical basis, safety and health impact, operating procedures, process safety information, informing and training people before start-up, permits and emergency plans, and the pre-startup safety review.
Press Mark Done on each, or Not Applicable with the reason it does not apply. Press Reopen Item to undo either.
Add items of your own under the list. Press Raise Action on any item to open a corrective action linked to the change.
Once every approver has approved and every required item is dealt with, press Mark Implemented.

4.Close a change

When the change is in place and settled, press Close Change and add a closing note.
For a temporary change, say whether it was reversed or made permanent. Making it permanent is a change of its own, so raise a new change for it.
A temporary change that is implemented appears in reminders as it nears its end date and once it has passed it, until it is closed.

5.Edit, take back or export (admin)

The requester or an admin can edit a change while it is a draft. To change one in review or approved, press Back to Draft: every approval so far is cleared and it goes round again.
An admin can delete a change, which removes its checklist and the actions raised from it.
An admin can press Export CSV in the register for one row per change, with its approvals and checklist progress.

Common questions

Do we need this if we are not covered by process safety management?: 29 CFR 1910.119 requires a written change procedure only for processes it covers. For everyone else the same review is good practice, since changes are where new hazards come from, and every checklist item can be marked not applicable with a reason.
Can an admin approve on someone else's behalf?: No. Only the approver whose turn it is can approve or reject. An admin can take the change back to draft and change the approvers, which clears the approvals and starts again.
Who can see the changes?: Everyone with a login whose company has the module on. Comments and @mentions work on each change, the same as on incidents and corrective actions.