Accident prevention in SME using ORM

Risk perception in SMEs is normally low, and this is closely related to the fact that the chance of a mall enterprise experiencing a serious accident is very small compared to companies that employ a large workforce. This is a fact even though the SMEs together have a higher accident frequency compared with large enterprises. To reach the SMEs we must find a way of supporting them, because they normally have neither the time nor the resources to acquire the knowledge and awareness necessary for working with their own safety. The Occupational Risk Model (ORM) developed by the Dutch Workgroup Occupational Risk Model WORM has been transferred to a Danish context, with the aim of creating a more simple system particularly for SMEs. The ORM identifies the activities in a person’s daily work that contribute most to the person’s risk and also identifies what conditions need to be changed in order to reduce that risk. Our investigation seeks to determine whether we can use the ORM method to collect information about the risks in SMEs and whether we can present this information in a way that allows the SMEs to use it constructively. Finally we seek to evaluate the impact of this method on occupational safety in SMEs, as the project also focuses on management factors that can motivate the SMEs to increase their risk awareness and own initiatives. The project is now half way through the project period.