Apply work health and safety principles to the design and production of a solution, including hazard identification, risk assessment, control measures, safe operating procedures and relevant standards

What this dot point is asking

NESA wants you to apply work health and safety, or WHS, throughout the design and production of your solution. This means identifying hazards, assessing the risk they pose, choosing control measures, writing safe operating procedures and following relevant standards. WHS is both a professional obligation and an assessable part of the Major Design Project folio.

The answer

Why WHS matters in design

WHS is a legal and ethical responsibility, not an afterthought. Designers must consider safety for the people who make a product and the people who use it. In the Major Design Project, planning and recording safe practice is assessable, and high risk processes such as work involving mains electrical voltage require certification by an accredited person in line with Australian Standards.

Hazard identification

The first step is identifying hazards, anything with the potential to cause harm. In a workshop these include sharp tools, machinery, dust, fumes, noise, heat, chemicals, electricity, manual handling and the layout of the space itself. Hazards are identified by inspecting the workspace, reading equipment manuals and consulting safety data sheets for materials.

Risk assessment

Once hazards are identified, you assess the risk each poses by considering how likely harm is and how severe it would be. A risk matrix combining likelihood and consequence helps rank hazards so the most serious are controlled first. Documenting this assessment in the folio shows a professional, systematic approach to safety.

The hierarchy of control

Risks are reduced using the hierarchy of control, from most to least effective:

• Eliminate the hazard entirely, for example by removing a dangerous process.
• Substitute it with something safer, such as a less toxic adhesive.
• Isolate people from the hazard, for example with guarding or a separate area.
• Engineering controls, such as ventilation, machine guards or dust extraction.
• Administrative controls, such as safe procedures, signage and training.
• Personal protective equipment, such as eye protection, gloves and hearing protection, used only as a last resort.

The order matters: PPE protects one person if everything else fails, whereas elimination removes the risk for everyone.

Safe operating procedures and training

A safe operating procedure sets out the correct, safe steps for using a particular machine or process. Combined with proper training and supervision, these administrative controls ensure equipment is used correctly. Recording the procedures you followed in the folio demonstrates that production was managed safely.

Standards and compliance

Australian Standards define safe requirements for materials, equipment and processes. Relevant standards might cover electrical safety, protective equipment or particular materials. Compliance is both a legal duty and evidence of professional practice. High voltage practical work must be checked and certified by an accredited person before use.

WHS evidence in the folio

WHS is documented across the folio, not in a single page. The proposal flags safety considerations, development records risk assessments for chosen processes, and realisation shows safe practice with dated evidence such as photographs of guarding, PPE and a tidy, controlled workspace. This continuous record is what markers reward.

Why this matters in the HSC

Safe practice is assessed within the Major Design Project, and the written paper can ask about WHS in design and production. A response that names the hierarchy of control and explains why elimination beats PPE, supported by a real example from a workshop process, shows the depth markers look for.