Inspections carried out by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) can be stressful for industrial and manufacturing enterprises, especially if they don’t know what to expect.
Consider the recent uptick in Site Specific Targeting (SST), which uses collected data to identify businesses that have higher-than-average injury and illness rates. Many of these companies have now received letters from OSHA indicating they are flagged for potential inspection. Exactly when and how this inspection will happen, however, isn’t specified in the OSHA correspondence.
If inspectors find workplace safety gaps, documentation issues or process breakdowns, companies may face monetary fines and operational penalties that could lead to reputation and revenue loss. With the right preparation, however, manufacturers can turn OSHA inspections into opportunities rather than obstacles. Here’s how.
What is an OSHA inspection?
OSHA was established to reduce the number and severity of workplace accidents. To accomplish this goal, the administration developed both general and industry-specific regulations that businesses must follow. For example, OSHA defines clear lockout/tagout (LOTO) processes for machinery undergoing repair; failure to follow these processes puts companies at risk of fines or other sanctions.
Organizational compliance is evaluated through a combination of self-reporting and OSHA inspections. As noted by the OSHA inspections fact sheet, these inspectors are “experienced, well-trained industrial hygienists and safety professionals whose goal is to assure compliance with OSHA requirements.”
Common types of OSHA inspections include:
- Imminent danger
- Fatality or catastrophe
- Employee complaint
- Programmed or routine
- Follow-up
Some industries and facilities will have higher inspection rates than others. For example, food and beverage manufacturers may be subject to more frequent inspections to ensure they comply with cross-contamination and allergen best practices. Industrial or construction operations with higher-than-average injury risk are also inspected more often.
What triggers an OSHA inspection?
OSHA inspections can be triggered by one or more conditions. As noted above, the administration is now using collected injury and illness data to conduct targeted inspections and inform higher-risk businesses that they should prepare for possible audits. In many cases, however, inspections are conducted without advance notice.
Here are some events that may trigger an OSHA inspection:
- Formal or anonymous employee complaints
- Referrals from other standards or regulatory agencies
- High-hazard industry targeting
- Past violations or repeat citations
- Poor injury and illness record-keeping (OSHA 300 / 300A / 301 logs)
What OSHA inspectors typically look for
OSHA inspections follow a set pattern. First, inspectors (also called compliance officers) present their credentials for verification. Next is the opening conference, where inspectors will explain why the workplace was selected and detail the scope of the inspection.
This is followed by the walkaround. The OSHA compliance officer, along with company representatives, will walk through in-scope areas and inspect for potential hazards. In addition, the officer will review worksite injury and illness records. Once the walkaround is completed, the OSHA inspector will hold a closing conference to review the findings, make recommendations and detail proposed penalties.
During the walkaround, inspectors typically examine:
- Machine guarding and equipment safety practices
- LOTO safety procedures
- Electrical safety and panel compliance
- Hazard communication, such as labels and safety data sheets (SDS)
- Personal protective equipment (PPE) availability and usage
- Fall protection processes
- Emergency exits and signage
- Housekeeping operations and the state of walking and working surfaces
- Maintenance-related hazards and unsafe equipment conditions
- Safety training records and documentation
Preparing for an OSHA inspection before it happens
Inspections typically occur without warning, so how can companies prepare for audits in advance? Take a proactive approach with these eight steps.
Step 1: Conduct regular internal safety audits
Start with regular safety audits to detect and resolve potential issues. This means less stress when auditors arrive.
Step 2: Identify and correct hazards early
Prioritize proactive hazard identification. The sooner problems are found and addressed, the lower their risk to operations.
Step 3: Keep OSHA-required documentation current
Review OSHA documentation such as OSHA 300, 300A and 301 logs for consistency and ensure these logs are current.
Step 4: Maintain accurate training records
Keep comprehensive and accurate records of all staff safety training, from front-line workers to C-suite members.
Step 5: Ensure SOPs and safety procedures are documented and accessible
Create accessible databases for SOPs and safety protocols that are regularly reviewed and updated.
Step 6: Perform preventive maintenance on safety-critical equipment
Ensure preventive maintenance of safety-critical equipment. This includes regularly scheduled performance evaluations and issue identification, along with comprehensive documentation.
Step 7: Involve maintenance, operations and EHS teams
Build a cross-functional compliance team that includes maintenance, operations and EHS teams.
Step 8: Assign an OSHA inspection response team
Don’t get caught unaware. Assign staff and supervisors to OSHA inspection response teams and ensure they have the time and resources needed to proactively resolve any compliance issues.
OSHA documentation you should have ready
Along with production-floor inspections, officers will also ask to see safety standards and manufacturing documentation that demonstrates OSHA compliance.
Documents you should have on hand include:
- OSHA 300, 300A and 301 logs
- Written safety programs for LOTO, hazard communication and SOPs
- Training records and certifications
- Industrial machinery inspection and maintenance records
- Incident investigation reports
- Emergency action and evacuation plans
- Safety documentation and operations manuals for assets, equipment and facilities infrastructure
Preparing employees for an OSHA inspection
It’s also important to prepare employees for an OSHA inspection. Compliance officers will often ask staff questions about current working conditions and safety practices, which can lead to a sense of “inspection panic,” which often makes workers worried they will say or do the wrong thing during the inspection.
To help prepare staff for an inspection, start with a discussion of employees’ rights. A workers’ representative has the right to accompany OSHA inspectors during the walkaround, and employees who are asked questions by inspectors have the right to private, confidential interviews.
Next, reinforce the importance of consistent safety practice and back this up with regular safety training and evaluations to help staff understand the specific safety procedures they’re responsible for following, checking and reporting. PPE is a good example; it’s not enough to simply have protective equipment available. Instead, companies need to ensure PPE is in good condition and is consistently used when required. It’s also important to train supervisors on common OSHA inspection processes. This helps them spot and resolve potential issues before inspectors arrive.
Ultimately, companies should strive to create a workplace culture that consistently puts safety first. This both improves alignment with OSHA expectations and limits the need for quick fixes that only occur in response to imminent inspections.
What to do during an OSHA inspection
OSHA audits aren’t a passive process. During the inspection, staff should:
- Verify inspector credentials
- Ask questions during the opening conference
- Accompany the inspector during the walkthrough
- Take notes and photos
- Answer questions accurately and concisely
- Avoid speculation
- Document any identified issues
After the OSHA inspection: Next steps
When the inspection ends, the next steps begin. This starts with the closing conference. Inspectors will sit down with your team, explain their findings and explain what must be done to correct issues and eliminate hazards.
Compliance officers can also answer questions about the severity of infractions and their potential penalties. For example, failure to post appropriate safety signage can lead to a fine of $16,550 per violation, per OSHA, while failing to abate an identified issue can cost $16,550 per day past the abatement date.
Equipped with this information, teams can take action to correct identified issues within required timelines and create practices that prevent repeat violations. Companies may also choose to appeal citations or negotiate potential penalties.
Ideally, inspection outcomes should be used to strengthen safety programs and create more consistent safety practices.
The role of maintenance in OSHA compliance
Maintenance plays a key role in OSHA compliance. Failure to properly maintain assets can lead to unpredictable equipment behavior, which in turn puts worker safety and OSHA compliance at risk.
Maintenance practices that improve OSHA compliance include:
- Preventing hazards through proper equipment upkeep
- Conducting machine risk assessments of guarding and safety systems
- Supporting lockout/tagout compliance
- Keeping maintenance records inspection-ready
- Identifying unsafe conditions before incidents occur
- Aligning maintenance strategies with safety objectives
- Providing regular industrial maintenance training for operators and technicians
While it’s impossible to fully eliminate the role of reactive maintenance in safety operations, taking a proactive approach to industrial maintenance safety can help build preventive and predictive processes that improve risk management.
Prepare for OSHA inspections with confidence
OSHA standards inspections often happen without warning, putting pressure on executives, plant leaders and front-line teams to demonstrate compliance in real-time.
With the right approach, however, manufacturers and industrial organizations can ensure they’re ready for inspections and use audit findings to create and maintain a safety-first culture.
The multifaceted nature of safety and compliance, however, means that many companies aren’t sure where to start. With more than 40 years of experience, ATS helps organizations strengthen maintenance programs, reduce risk through reliability-driven hazard prevention, deploy predictive maintenance analytics and condition monitoring practices, and maintain alignment with OSHA recordkeeping requirements.
Improve your OSHA inspection readiness with services and solutions from ATS. Let’s talk.
References
Warrick, B. (2025, September 26). Is your business inspection-ready? What OSHA’s SST letter means for you. University of South Florida. https://www.usf.edu/health/public-health/news/2025/ready-for-any-osha-inspection.aspx
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. (2016, August.). OSHA fact sheet. U.S. Department of Labor. https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/publications/FACTSHEET-INSPECTIONS.pdf
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. (n.d.). OSHA penalties. U.S. Department of Labor. https://www.osha.gov/penalties
