Institutional failure: are safety management systems the answer?

In spite of an overwhelming number of safety management programs, incidents and accidents that could seemingly, in hindsight, have been prevented, still occur. Institutional failure is seen as a major contributor in almost all cases. With the anticipated significant increase in the number of nuclear plants around the world, a drastic step in the way we manage safety is deemed essential to further reduce the currently already very low rate of accidents to levels that will not cause undue public concern and threaten the success of the nuclear 'renaissance'. To achieve this, many industries have already started implementing a Safety Management System (SMS) approach, aimed at harmonizing, rationalizing and integrating management processes, safety culture and operational risk assessment. This paper discusses the origins and the nature of SMS based in part on the experience of the aviation industry, and shows how SMS is poised to be the next generation in the way the nuclear industry manages safety. It also discusses the need for better direct measures of risk to demonstrate the success of SMS implementation. (author)