IntroductionOne major benefit of SMS is the proactive element of identifying hazards and risks before they cause accidents, and designing and implementing controls to improve safety. Many of the professions available in the aviation industry involve high-risk situations even if you aren’t flying the plane. By now you should have a fair idea of what some of those hazards are, what risks they present, and some common controls implemented to mitigate those risks. This assignment is an exercise in proactive hazard identification, risk assessment, and hazard controls. You will be presented with a scenario and asked to discuss the potential hazards, risks, and present possible controls.
ScenarioTraffic on city streets today is regulated and controlled through a complex series of signs, signals, laws, and customs. In many ways it has its own culture. But travel back to the advent of the automobile and people weren’t really prepared for what they might literally run into.It’s 1890 and you’ve just built your very own sports car (Consider at this point a car from present day to be used in this scenario). You can’t wait to test it out and see just how fast it can go. For a moment you consider the condition of the streets in your town and you wonder how well your automobile will fit in with the current occupants, mainly horses, carriages, and people on foot.
Before racing away, you take a step outside and consider the scene before you. What hazards might you run into, or create for others on the street. As you identify different hazards consider the level of risk each presents. Once your analysis is complete, design some controls that you can implement, maybe some you already have, before taking your first drive. Make sure the controls you design are things you can use immediately that would help you make your test drive the same day.Once you are fairly certain you’ve done enough to get you through your first drive, consider what additional risks you will encounter as more and more automobiles take to the streets. What long term controls might you design to regulate traffic through already crowded streets?
InstructionsFor this assignment you will need to submit a written response, at least 1000 words, to the scenario above. Carefully consider both the image presented as well as the design of the car you are driving. The car you drive is of your own choosing and the controls implemented should be of your own design. You can include controls that are already evident on cars today, but you should allow yourself to be creative and think up a few of your own custom solutions. Consider pages 131-140(2nd Edition) or 119-128(1st Edition) of the SMS textbook. Pay particular attention to the tables mentioned there and address your hazards, risks, and controls in a similar manner.
GradingThis assignment is worth 100 points according to the following rubric:
20 Points – Describe the design of your car. Discuss what it is capable of as well as a simple summary of its systems, i.e., power, steering, etc. You don’t need to be overly technical. You should also insert an image of your car into your final document.
10 Points – Identify at least five hazards you may run into.
20 Points – Analyze each hazard in turn and assign it to a cell on the Risk Matrix on page 23(2nd Edition), or 20/140(1st Edition) in your SMS text. Make sure you provide an explanation for which cell you assign. Remember, one hazard can present multiple risks.
20 Points – Identify or design at least two controls for each risk and discuss how these controls would alter the risk matrix. Are there any risks you might consider unacceptable? Would you test and sell your automobile if there were?
20 Points – Consider long term controls. Contrast the difference between your test drive in 1890 and current conditions on the road today. Discuss the controls that are in place and the culture that surrounds a daily commute. Can you identify aspects of a safety culture in this system? How do you think your driving experience might change if a safety culture were more widely adopted?
10 Points – Your response is well written and free of significant grammatical and spelling errors.