1、 Guidance Notes on the Development of Procedures and Technical Manuals GUIDANCE NOTES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROCEDURES AND TECHNICAL MANUALS APRIL 2016 American Bureau of Shipping Incorporated by Act of Legislature of the State of New York 1862 Copyright 2016 American Bureau of Shipping ABS Plaza 16
2、855 Northchase Drive Houston, TX 77060 USA Foreword Foreword Safety and environmental concerns demand an investment in time and energy to develop and implement accurate, effective instructional materials. Consistency is the key to efficiency, quality control, and safe operations. This consistency ca
3、n come from the use of well-written administrative, regulatory, operating, emergency, maintenance, and routine duty procedures and technical manuals. With requests from industry, and research done through the ABS Mariner Personnel Safety (MPS) project, ABS recognizes the need within the maritime ind
4、ustry (including ships and offshore installations) for guidance in developing procedures and technical manuals. The purpose of these Guidance Notes is to aid in aligning instructional material to safety and environmental considerations; revising existing documents for conformance to current practice
5、s, policies, and regulatory requirements; and implementing the new and/or updated documents into a safety program to enhance productivity and reduce accidents. The guidance presented is recommendatory. Although ABS encourages owners, operators, and manufacturers to adopt these principles wherever fe
6、asible and applicable, compliance is not required. The intent is for technical documentation writers to tailor the information presented in these Guidance Notes to the needs and preferences of their particular organization. These Guidance Notes become effective on the first day of the month of publi
7、cation. Users are advised to check periodically on the ABS website www.eagle.org to verify that this version of these Guidance Notes is the most current. We welcome your feedback. Comments or suggestions can be sent electronically by email to rsdeagle.org. Terms of Use The information presented here
8、in is intended solely to assist the reader in the methodologies and/or techniques discussed. These Guidance Notes do not and cannot replace the analysis and/or advice of a qualified professional. It is the responsibility of the reader to perform their own assessment and obtain professional advice. I
9、nformation contained herein is considered to be pertinent at the time of publication, but may be invalidated as a result of subsequent legislations, regulations, standards, methods, and/or more updated information and the reader assumes full responsibility for compliance. This publication may not be
10、 copied or redistributed in part or in whole without prior written consent from ABS. ii ABSGUIDANCE NOTES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROCEDURES AND TECHNICAL MANUALS .2016 Table of Contents GUIDANCE NOTES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROCEDURES AND TECHNICAL MANUALS CONTENTS SECTION 1 Introduction 1 1 General .
11、 1 1.1 Application . 1 1.2 Definitions for Instructional Materials . 1 2 Definition of a Procedure 2 2.1 Compliance with Standards . 2 3 Definition of a Technical Manual . 3 4 Importance of Instructional Materials 3 5 Influencing Compliance and Performance 3 6 Contents of these Guidance Notes . 3 SE
12、CTION 2 The Role of Instructional Materials . 5 1 General . 5 1.1 Definitions 5 1.2 Limits of Written Materials Relating to Maritime Environments 5 2 Purpose of Instructional Materials 5 3 Use of Instructional Materials . 6 4 Concerns to Address in Instructional Materials 6 4.1 High-Level Concerns .
13、 6 4.2 Safe Operating Limits 6 5 Types of Instructional Materials 7 6 Management Oversight of Instructional Materials 7 SECTION 3 Writing Instructional Materials 8 1 General . 8 1.1 Definitions 8 2 Initiation of New Instructional Materials 9 3 Goal Definition 9 4 Management Approval to Proceed . 10
14、5 Information Gathering . 10 5.1 Subject Matter Experts (SME) . 10 5.2 Source/Supporting Documentation 10 5.3 Writing to a Specific Audience . 10 ABSGUIDANCE NOTES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROCEDURES AND TECHNICAL MANUALS .2016 iii 6 Effective Presentation of Material . 11 7 Enhancing Usability 11 7.1
15、User Participation 11 7.2 Instructional Material Effectiveness . 11 7.3 Instructional Material Maintenance 11 8 Instructional Material Writing Elements 12 8.1 Instruction Number 12 8.2 Clarity 12 8.3 Brevity 12 8.4 Use of Imperative (Command) Sentence Structure . 12 8.5 User Friendliness/Usability 1
16、2 8.6 Technical Accuracy 13 9 Style Format Guidelines 13 9.1 Font . 13 9.2 Sentence Structure 13 9.3 Vocabulary . 15 9.4 Level of Detail 16 10 Document Organization 16 10.1 Front Matter . 17 10.2 Document Sections 18 10.3 Ending the Procedure 20 10.4 Appended Information . 22 TABLE 1 Usage of Signal
17、 Words . 19 FIGURE 1 Sample Template 21 SECTION 4 Graphics in Instructional Materials . 23 1 General . 23 1.1 Definitions 23 1.2 Graphics 23 1.3 Sources of Graphics 24 1.4 Types of Graphics 24 1.5 Guidelines for Using Graphics in Instructional Materials 27 1.6 Incorporating Electronic Media into Ins
18、tructional Materials 27 FIGURE 1 Three (3) Dimensional Diagram 25 FIGURE 2 Flowchart Showing a Process . 26 SECTION 5 Verifying, Validating, Approving, Certifying, and Implementing Instructional Materials . 28 1 General . 28 1.1 Definitions 28 1.2 Final Phase of Instructional Document Development Pr
19、ocess 28 iv ABSGUIDANCE NOTES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROCEDURES AND TECHNICAL MANUALS .2016 2 Verifying and Validating Instructional Materials 28 2.1 Verification . 28 2.2 Validation . 29 3 Resolving and Incorporating Final Comments 29 4 Proofreading and Checking for Format and Style 29 4.1 Proofread
20、ing 29 4.2 Instructional Document Format and Style 29 5 Approving the New/Revised Instructional Materials . 30 6 Certifying the New Instructional Materials 30 7 Implementing New/Revised Instructional Materials 30 7.1 Planning for Implementation 30 7.2 Distribution 30 SECTION 6 Managing Instructional
21、 Materials . 31 1 General . 31 1.1 Document Control . 31 1.2 Access . 31 1.3 Training . 32 2 Maintenance of Instructional Materials . 32 2.1 Updates . 32 2.2 Periodic Reviews . 32 APPENDIX 1 Checklist for the Preparation of Instructional Materials . 33 APPENDIX 2 Example Constrained Word List and Co
22、nstrained Language List . 34 1 Constrained Word List 34 2 Constrained Language List . 37 APPENDIX 3 Analysis Techniques 50 1 Conducting a Needs Assessment . 50 1.1 Discovery . 50 1.2 Identifying and Prioritizing Opportunities . 51 1.3 Action Plan/Recommendations . 51 2 Conducting a Task Analysis 52
23、3 Conducting a Risk Analysis 53 3.1 Conducting a HAZOP Study 53 3.2 Job Hazards Analysis 53 4 Summary of Pre-procedure Development Activities . 53 FIGURE 1 Example Form for Task Analysis for Instructional Materials 52 ABSGUIDANCE NOTES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROCEDURES AND TECHNICAL MANUALS .2016 v A
24、PPENDIX 4 Examples of Instructional Materials . 54 APPENDIX 5 References 57 vi ABSGUIDANCE NOTES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROCEDURES AND TECHNICAL MANUALS .2016 Section 1: Introduction SECTION 1 Introduction 1 General Humans have a limited capacity to store information in short-term and working memory.
25、 Research suggests that humans can process in short-term or working memory about five to nine pieces of information at one time. Working memory is that memory involved in directed conscious attention. For example, start-up operating instructions for the manual operation of a potable water system req
26、uires the operator to remember pumps, chemical levels, etc. For this reason, the maritime and other industries should not rely exclusively on an individuals memory to perform work-related tasks, especially those that are complex, hazardous, and have the potential to impact personnel safety, equipmen
27、t, or the environment. Appropriately written and implemented instructional materials (procedures and technical manuals) can reduce the cognitive effort of personnel, especially the memory element of performing a task, thus aiding in reducing human errors. 1.1 Application The principles and guideline
28、s in these Guidance Notes apply to writers of maritime procedures and technical manuals who wish to further understand the document development process, the intent of, and the benefits derived from appropriate procedure and technical manual design, development, implementation, and life-cycle trackin
29、g. For the purpose of brevity, the terms “procedures” and “technical manuals” are not explicitly mentioned throughout this document and are instead referred to as “instructional materials/documents”. These umbrella terms include procedures, technical manuals, checklists, and/or any other instruction
30、al-type of material used to perform a specific task(s). These Guidance Notes can be considered applicable to all instructional documents in both paper and electronic format. These Guidance Notes are intended to serve as a reference for maritime organizations when planning, developing, implementing,
31、revising, and maintaining instructional materials. These Guidance Notes describe general concepts, provide design considerations, and offer content suggestions for instructional materials. The goal of these Guidance Notes is for the writer to tailor the instructional material to their own unique nee
32、ds and preferences, so long as the concepts of clarity, accuracy, and completeness are maintained while also promoting safety and efficiency. 1.2 Definitions for Instructional Materials Administrative Procedure: Developed to meet an organizations goals, including planning, organizing, staffing, dire
33、cting and motivating personnel, controlling quality, and budgeting. Checklist: A list of actions or events to be noted, checked, or remembered, and when checked, verifies that the actions have been performed. Emergency Procedure: A list of steps that describe required actions or tasks to be taken in
34、 the event of a failure of the equipment or system. Human Error: Performance of humans that deviates from the desired performance. This definition is not a failure to perform as directed, but failure to perform as desired. Instructional Material/Document: An umbrella term used to describe well-defin
35、ed procedural documents, technical manuals, and/or any other written material that is intended for training or learning of tasks, processes, procedures, and systems. These terms also include instructional materials in any digital or electronic format. Job Aid: Includes any device (whether in written
36、, mechanical, electronic, or other form) that can be used by a person to facilitate the performance of a job or task. Job aids are often printed or visual summaries of key points or steps essential to the performance of a task. ABSGUIDANCE NOTES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROCEDURES AND TECHNICAL MANUALS
37、 .2016 1 Section 1 Introduction Maintenance Procedure: A list of steps that describes how to perform a task required to maintain or repair an equipment item. It is also a documented standard to which the job or task should be performed. Management of Change: A systematic program to assure that chang
38、es to a process are appropriately reviewed, and any hazards introduced by the change are identified, analyzed, and controlled prior to resuming operation. Near Miss/Close Call: An event, or chain of events, that under slightly different circumstances could have resulted in an accident, injury, damag
39、e, or loss of personnel, equipment or the vessel. Operating Procedure: Developed to include regularly recurring work processes. Procedure: A fixed, step-by-step sequence of activities or course of action that have definite start and end points, and that must be followed in a specific order to correc
40、tly and safely perform a task. Routine Duty Procedure: Developed for activities such as regular checks of gauges for indication of operating temperatures or pressures, checks for running (on/off) condition of equipment, and checks for unusual noises or vibrations. Safe Operating Procedure: Those tha
41、t are directed specifically towards the safe use of equipment or processes. Technical Manual: A well-defined document containing procedures on operation, handling, maintenance, and repair. Short-Term Memory: The mechanism for not only holding a limited amount of information in our consciousness in a
42、n active state but also readily available for a short period of time. Technical Manual: A well-defined set of instructions that have a specific goal to be accomplished, such as installation, operation, usage, maintenance, and training for the effective use of equipment, machinery, or deployment of p
43、rocesses and systems. Working Memory: The execution and attention aspect of short-term memory involved in the integration, processing, disposal, and retrieval of information. 2 Definition of a Procedure Procedures are a specified series of actions or operations leading to an outcome within the opera
44、tion of a process or system. Procedures are detailed lists of steps describing how to perform various tasks, and as a result, they represent the quality to which the tasks should be performed. Procedures explain what is expected and required of a person when they perform a specific task. Procedures
45、may range from detailed guidance, to step-by-step instructions, to job aids, or short checklists. In order to determine the level of detail needed in a procedure, there are several factors to consider, namely the significance of error, the complexity of the task, how often the task is performed, as
46、well as the knowledge, skills, and abilities of the user. Job aids can reduce the amount of decision-making required and decrease the need to memorize key points of the task. Job aids include any device that can be used by a person to facilitate the performance of a job or task. Job aids are often p
47、rinted or visual summaries of key points or steps essential to the performance of a task. They assist by directing, guiding, and informing people. Some formats for job aids can be in the form of checklists, worksheets, decision tables, algorithms, etc. (see Appendix 4, “Examples of Instructional Mat
48、erials”). 2.1 Compliance with Standards It is important to note that some documented procedures must be prepared to comply with particular standards published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). For example, ISO 9001, this document specifies requirements for maintaining effe
49、ctive quality assurance systems for manufacturing and service industries. Additionally, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Maritime Safety Committee and other regulatory bodies can make amendments to older editions of specific procedural documents that are already in place. In a June 2013 meeting, there were amendments to the 1979, 1989, and 2009 editions of the MODU Code, which now require that specific procedures are developed for entry into enclosed spaces. This example reflects the importance, for the writers of instructional materials, to continuously monitor changes or
