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RAMS shouldn’t take hours and hours of formatting, copy-and-pasting
Create better RAMS in less time, anywhere and on any device, without the need for training or technical expertise. Our Customer success team will onboard and assist you from day one if you have any questions or need any support.
Take advantage of well-structured documents that are quick and easy to read.
Integrate RAMS with Training Register to pull through training and competency records to your projects.
Integrate with other software you use such as Teams, Sharepoint or any other software with an API.
Link your HandsHQ and Procore accounts to have high-quality RAMS documents accessible in Procore projects.
Clients will ask for site-specific risk assessments and method statements (RAMS) when you complete work for them. Without this information, these documents will often be rejected causing lost time, bad PR and general frustration.
So what actually are site-specific RAMS and what’s the easiest way to produce them?
As the name suggests, risk assessments and method statements need to contain site-specific information. The reason for this is to demonstrate that the documents are what the law refers to as ‘suitable and sufficient’ (i.e. they are appropriate for the works that have been proposed and contain enough information to keep people safe). So there is a legal requirement for RAMS to be right for the job and contain adequate information to manage the risk, hence why clients find this so important.
Site-specific information may come in a variety of forms. There are generally 3 categories of information that can be classified as site-specific:
Site-specific RAMS do not need to be overly complicated, they just need to reflect what is actually going on around the site and include all the information that has been shared with you. You may be proactive and send RAMS in advance of the work but be aware that you may still need to edit your RAMS if you discover new information whilst on site. Site-specific RAMS should certainly be treated as a living, dynamic document.
Before you start adding site-specific details, you will want to first check that the RAMS addresses the task at hand, so focus on hazards on the job before moving into considering site information.
Once you are satisfied that the RAMS accurately reflects your task and captures the common hazards, you will then need to ask about the site-specific information. Your first action is to speak to your client point of contact and simply ask them ‘What site-specific details do I need to be aware of’? Someone like a seasoned project manager should be aware of the dangers on site and their safety expectations for the job.
Secondly, if you went through a procurement process with your client, it would be handy to go back to this process and check if health and safety arrangements and expectations were shared when you completed their forms. Often, a contractor handbook or health and safety procedures and policies would have been shared so you were aware of what needs to be followed and agreed with before becoming an approved preferred supplier.
The other source of information that is very simple to access is your client’s website. Many organisations publish their health and safety information on there such as a safety policy, safety systems manual or a general overview of safety objectives and plans. Your largest clients may even have a supplier portal so that you can remind yourself about the expectations and arrangements from the client. Wherever the information is found, make sure you reflect any information found to increase your chances of RAMS being passed through successfully.
If you have no luck gaining this information in advance, check to see if a site induction can be completed arriving at the site. Many organisations have now digitised their inductions online and you may be able to attend some e-learning early on to capture the site information you are looking for. The other task you could do in advance if you need to visit a site to quote the job is to physically walk the work area with your site host to jot down the health and safety details you observe.
Speak to your site host again before arriving on site and check if anything has been missed. Many organisations will now review RAMS with a checklist before you arrive on site so they should be able to advise you further if something else needs to be included.
Your other source of support would be to consult with your health and safety competent person, whether that is someone in-house or a consultant. With a wealth of health and safety knowledge, these professionals will be aware of what hazards and arrangements to consider before thinking about their site experience and what questions they would challenge you with.
Lastly, make sure that the RAMS are seen by the workforce in advance so they can comment on whether site-specific information they are aware of has not been included. The team may have already been on site or worked with this client before so they may be aware of information that has to be added to pass the mark.
Check what other site-specific safe systems of work need to be followed. For example, non-routine high-risk work may require you to complete a client-specific permit to work or follow a standard operating procedure to comply with site requirements. If in doubt, just ask as there is no such thing as a silly question in safety. Clients who take safety seriously will appreciate the questions beforehand or during your site induction.
We hope this quicksand simple guide has been useful in producing site-specific RAMS quickly and easily. By including this information upfront, your safe system remains more compliant and less likely to cause an incident. The information also allows you to engage more with your client and show your continued commitment to health and safety which can never be a bad thing if you are looking to secure more work.
Speak to a member of HandsHQ if you are struggling with making your RAMS site-specific. We will be able to show you working examples from our wide range of risk assessment libraries and show you how RAMS amendments can be made at the click of a button with our risk register feature.
