During the 1950s, the world was prospering from a post-World War II boom that lasted into the mid 1970's. During this period, industries grew rapidly and with this growth, came the increased awareness of workplace incidents and fatalities. Naturally, a number of occupational safety providers were established through government initiatives such as the National Occupational Safety Association "NOSA", NIOSH, Health and Safety Executive, OSHA and The British Safety Council. In addition, the need for well trained safety officers began and as such a number of training courses were developed, including SAMTRAC. SAMTRAC began as an internal induction course for NOSA's employees, but by the early 1960s and, based on the demand for skills, NOSA began offering the training course to its broader client base. As NOSA expanded into South America, Asia, Australasia and the Middle East so the demand for SAMTRAC increased internationally. The stumbling block to meet this demand was the fact that the legal module was based on South African legislation and the course was in English. Accordingly, despite seeing good growth in the above markets, growth was restricted by the fact that the course was not customised to meet the needs of individuals and clients across the globe. This lead to the development of SAMTRAC International, which caters for a number of different languages and country specific legislation. Through this process SAMTRAC International is now available to both companies and individuals across the globe as the demand for qualified HSE professionals continues to grow.
Initially the course was purely focused on safety, but through the 1980’s and 1990’s, and in line with international trends, the course was transformed by industry experts to incorporate both health and environmental best practise. Over the past 10 years over 40 000 learners have completed the SAMTRAC course.
SAMTRAC International is suitable for all industries and is available in English. The course is currently being translated into:
- Spanish
- Portuguese
- Mandarin
In addition, whilst Module 2 (Legislation) covers the International Labour Organizations (ILO) principles, SAMTRAC International has been customised to include the HSE legislation for numerous countries around the globe. Through a strategic partnership with a specialised service provider, the health, safety and environmental legislation specific to your country may be included in the SAMTRAC International reading materials.
- Student study pack
Upon registration a study pack, which supplements your online e-learning content, will be sent via registered mail to your address. The pack will contain the following documents:
a. SAMTRAC International User Manual
b. SAMTRAC International Additional Notes
c. Regulatory Digest with country specific HSE legislation
d. SAMTRAC International Workplace Guidelines including:
i. NOSA CMB 253
ii. ISO 14001 & OHSAS 18001 requirements
iii. NOSA CMB 001
iv. AUDP11
v. Template Register Control Documents
vi. Template Appointment Forms
vii. HSE Incident Investigation Docket
- Access to the interactive e-learning portal
On registration you will receive a user name and password, which will give you access to SAMTRAC International's online e-learning content. The content has been developed to ensure that it is interactive and engaging and allows the learner the best opportunity to successfully complete the course in their own time and without the assistance of a tutor. In addition to the content, there is an online assessment, where students are required to obtain a minimum of 65% to qualify to write the final examination. SAMTRAC International has over 80 accredited exam centres around the world. In addition to the e-learning content, students will be able to participate in live forums, blogs, Q & A's and various other forms of interaction with various industry experts, tutors and fellow HSE students from around the globe.
SAMTRAC has built a reputation and brand that is recognised by companies in countries across the globe. Given that the training course is focussed on the identification and management of health, safety and environmental risks within a workplace, it caters for many different industries and is especially applicable for high risk areas. Given this, a number of the large multinational mining houses, construction companies, food & beverage companies and energy companies are continually sending their staff on SAMTRAC courses. A sample of companies that use SAMTRAC is reflected below.
