Activity hazard analysis template (blank)
Copy the table below, print this page, or build it as a digital checklist. Write one AHA for each phase of work, with one row per step.
Activity or definable feature of work: · Project and location: · Contract number: · Prepared by (name and title): · Reviewed by: · Date: · Overall risk assessment code (RAC):
| # | Job step | Hazards | Controls | RAC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||
| 2 | ||||
| 3 | ||||
| 4 | ||||
| 5 |
| Equipment to be used | Inspection requirements | Training requirements |
|---|---|---|
Competent and qualified persons for this activity: · Crew acknowledgement (name, signature, date for everyone doing the work).
What is the purpose of an activity hazard analysis?
An AHA makes the contractor think through a phase of work before anyone is exposed to it. It forces three questions for every step: what could hurt someone, what will stop it, and how bad is it if the controls fail. Because the AHA also lists the equipment, the inspections and the training the phase needs, it doubles as a readiness check: if the crane has no current inspection or the operator has no ticket, the AHA shows it before the lift, not after.
What goes in an activity hazard analysis?
| Field | What to write |
|---|---|
| Activity | The definable feature of work it covers, such as "Excavation and trenching, sewer line B", not a generic "site works". |
| Job steps | The work in the order it is done, one action per row, starting with a verb: "Locate utilities", "Excavate to 1.8 m". |
| Hazards | What could hurt someone at that step: cave-in, struck by plant, buried services, falls, noise, silica, traffic. |
| Controls | What will remove or reduce each hazard, chosen from the top of the hierarchy of control down. |
| RAC | The risk assessment code for the step: probability against severity on the matrix, giving extremely high, high, moderate or low. |
| Equipment | Plant, tools and protective systems the phase uses (excavator, trench box, gas detector). |
| Inspections | What is checked, how often and by whom: daily plant checks, trench inspection by the competent person each shift. |
| Training | The tickets, inductions and competencies the crew needs before starting. |
How do you write an activity hazard analysis?
- Identify the definable feature of work the AHA covers and who will do it.
- Break the phase into its main steps in the order they happen, with the supervisor and the crew.
- List the hazards at each step, including those from nearby work and site conditions.
- Set controls for each hazard, from elimination and engineering down to procedures and PPE.
- Rate each step with the risk assessment code and record the highest as the overall RAC.
- List the equipment, inspection and training requirements, and name the competent persons.
- Submit it for acceptance, brief the crew before work starts, and revise it when the method, crew or conditions change.
A filled example: trench excavation for a sewer line
| # | Job step | Hazards | Controls | RAC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Locate and mark services | Striking a live cable or gas main | 811 utility locate request; pothole by hand near the marks | M |
| 2 | Excavate to 1.8 m | Struck by excavator; cave-in | Exclusion zone and spotter; trench box placed as excavation proceeds | H |
| 3 | Enter trench to lay pipe | Cave-in; atmosphere; falling objects | Competent person inspects trench each shift; gas test; ladder within 7.6 m (25 ft) of workers; spoil at least 0.6 m (2 ft) back from the edge | M |
| 4 | Backfill and compact | Plant rollover; noise | Compactor operated from outside trench where possible; hearing protection | L |
Equipment: 20 t excavator, trench box, four-gas detector. Inspections: daily pre-start of plant, trench box and trench each shift. Training: excavator operator licence, competent person for excavation, confined space awareness.
What is the difference between an AHA and a JSA?
Both break work into steps, name the hazards and set controls. A job safety analysis is the general tool used in any industry, usually for a single task. An activity hazard analysis is the format required under EM 385-1-1, covers a whole phase of work and adds equipment, inspection and training requirements and a formal risk assessment code. On a US federal contract, use the AHA format; elsewhere, a JSA or, in Australian high-risk construction work, a SWMS fills the same role.
What makes an AHA fail?
- Written to get the contract accepted. An AHA copied from the last job and never briefed is paperwork, not planning.
- Too broad. "Site works" in one AHA hides the trench, the lift and the hot work in it.
- Controls without owners. If nobody is named to inspect the trench, nobody inspects it.
- Not updated. A change of method, plant or ground conditions needs a revised AHA and a fresh crew briefing.
Step by step
- Define the activity. Pick the phase of work the AHA covers and who will do it.
- List the steps. Break the phase into its main steps, in order, with the crew.
- Identify hazards and controls. For each step, name what could hurt someone and the controls from the top of the hierarchy down.
- Assign the risk assessment code. Rate probability against severity for each step and record the highest as the overall RAC.
- Add equipment, inspections and training. List the plant, the checks and the tickets the work needs, and name the competent persons.
- Accept, brief and review. Get the AHA accepted, brief the crew before starting, and revise it when conditions change.
A worked example
A civil contractor on a federal water project wrote one AHA for all earthworks. During review the safety lead split it into three: bulk excavation, trenching for services, and backfill. The trenching AHA named the competent person, added a gas test before entry and a trench box inspection each shift, and listed the excavator operator licence as a training requirement. It was briefed at the preparatory meeting, signed by the crew and revised when groundwater raised the trench's RAC.