What is a risk assessment report and what should it include?

• A. A log of all incidents in the facility.
• B. Documentation summarizing hazards, risk levels, protective measures, residual risk, and validation results.
• C. A blueprint of robot hardware configuration.
• D. A training plan for operators.

Answer: (B)

A risk assessment report is a formal document that captures the process of identifying hazards, evaluating the risks, and deciding on controls for a system. It should include a clear list of hazards and their corresponding risk levels, the protective measures chosen to reduce those risks, the residual risk remaining after applying the controls, and the validation or verification results showing that the controls work as intended. This combination lets you justify safety decisions, demonstrate that risks are being actively managed, and provide evidence that the controls perform during real or simulated use. For example, in a robotic cell, you would note hazards like pinch points, assign risk levels, specify guards or interlocks as controls, assess the remaining risk after those guards are in place, and document tests that confirm the safety measures function correctly. Other documents, such as an incident log, a hardware blueprint, or a separate training plan, serve different purposes and don’t substitute for the comprehensive risk assessment report that ties hazards to controls, residual risk, and validation in one record.