Most utilities ‘unlikely to comply’ with asset safety standards

Two thirds of organisations in the utilities sector are unlikely to comply with on-the-spot Health and Safety Executive inspections due to a lack of data proving assets are maintained to regulatory standards.

Nearly one fifth (18%) of utility companies surveyed have also received enforcement action due to assets not meeting Health and Safety Executive (HSE) compliance standards, with 10% receiving a fine.

The findings came as part of a survey of 2,000 people working in asset management and maintenance by BPD Zenith, with 500 of those surveyed working in the utility space. The survey found 66% of utility companies at risk of failing on-the-spot HSE inspections due to poor asset data quality and system management.

The HSE dictates asset inspection is necessary for “any equipment where significant risks to health and safety may arise from incorrect installation, reinstallation, deterioration or any other circumstances”, and that records should be kept and made available on request.

However, 51% of utility companies said their data isn’t sufficiently detailed, nor updated or recorded accurately enough, to comply with the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and other HSE regulations. Nearly a third (32%) of utility firms still use paper-based methods to record, update, and store critical maintenance data, with over half using Excel, the research revealed.

Roger Walker, group head of innovation at BPD Zenith, said: “Good data quality in asset management is a challenge for everyone. If you look at many aspects of the asset management data set, you would find flaws.”

In the event of an incident, the HSE would look for evidence that a company had complied with its duty of care to employees, the wider community, and the environment, he added. “The asset management system should show you have established and designed a routine for appropriate inspections and maintenance activities.

“But companies have not made the investment you might expect in asset management systems. To try and deal with that level of complexity in terms of compliance to standards and execution of work in a spreadsheet is something even the smallest of organisations would struggle to do.”

While companies were often good at defining asset management regimes, timely execution of work and record-keeping were more problematic. “Making sure systems are updated to reflect the fact work has been completed is a regular point of failure,” said Walker.

Companies could overcome this by providing high-quality mobile systems to technicians that enabled them to easily capture work that had been completed, he said.

“Having got the data into the system, you then need reporting and analytics that allow you to extract it in the event of an inspection.”