Hazard analysis

A hazard analysis is one of many methods that may be used to assess risk. At its core, the method entails describing a system object (such as a person or machine) that intends to conduct some activity. During the performance of that activity, a potential source of harm (referred to as a “factor” or hazard) may be encountered that could cause or contribute to an occurrence (mishap, incident, accident, hazardous event). Finally, that occurrence will result in some outcome that may be measured in terms of the degree of loss or harm. This outcome may be measured on a continuous scale, such as an amount of monetary loss, or the outcomes may be categorized into various levels of severity e.g. environmental damage, personal injury, or reputational damage etc.