In today’s rapidly evolving industrial landscape, integrating safety into the earliest stages of design is not just a best practice; it’s a necessity. Safety by Design (SbD), as outlined in ANSI/ASSP Z590.3-2021 – Prevention through Design, provides a structured methodology to eliminate hazards and reduce risks before they manifest in the workplace.
The Data Center Safety Council (DCSC) is committed to advancing operational safety through the implementation of SbD principles. By embedding proactive risk management strategies into the design and operation of data centers, DCSC aims to assist data center owners/operators to reduce costs, ensure compliance with regulatory and industry standards, and foster a safer, more resilient workplace. This white paper explores the core concepts of SbD, its benefits to the data center industry, and examples of how organizations can leverage these principles to achieve safer operations and reduce risks.
SbD is a proactive approach that integrates hazard identification and risk assessment into the design and planning phases of processes, equipment, facilities, and work methods. The goal is to eliminate or minimize risks at the source rather than relying on administrative controls or personal protective equipment (PPE).
Safety by Design principles emphasize proactive risk management throughout the lifecycle of data center systems. These principles align with guidance from standards such as ANSI Z590.3, which highlight:
• using the Hierarchy of Controls by prioritizing elimination, substitution, and engineering controls over administrative controls and PPE;
• taking a lifecycle approach by addressing safety from conceptual design through decommissioning; and
• encouraging stakeholder collaboration by engaging engineers, safety professionals, and end-users early in the design process to identify and mitigate risks.
Download the full whitepaper Safety by Design: A Proactive Approach to Risk Mitigation in the Data Center Industry.
About the Data Center Safety Council
Data Center Safety Council was created to establish a unified approach towards ensuring safety and wellbeing of personnel in data center operations. The vision is to create a forum where health and safety professionals work collaboratively as an industry group to improve data center worker safety wholistically. Together, member companies will address common issues and seek long-term solutions with vendors and suppliers for the benefit and safety of data center workers.