What does RAMS mean has two answers, and the second matters more. The letters mean risk assessment and method statement. On site the document means that somebody walked the task and found its hazards, decided the controls, placed each at a step, briefed the crew, took their signatures, and had the site approve it before the work started. The HSE's guidance, cited below, gives risk assessment as five steps: identify hazards, assess the risks, control the risks, record your findings, review the controls, and says that if you employ 5 or more people you must record your significant findings. The risk assessment and method statement tool on this site prints the document, free and without an account.
The letters
RA: the risk assessment, the legal record under regulation 3, cited below, of the hazards, the controls and the significant findings. MS: the method statement, the steps of the work with the controls attached.
On site
A RAMS means the controls are at steps and the crew knows them, so the edge protection is up before anyone reaches the edge. A task without one means the crew decides as it goes. The difference is visible in the first hour of the task.
To the site manager
Under CDM, cited below, a RAMS means a document to check against the plan before the task starts, and approve or return. A RAMS that names the plan's permits and emergency procedure at the right steps is approved the same day; one that names another site's is returned with the task waiting.
To the record
A signed RAMS in its version against the job means the question after an incident, was the hazard assessed and the control in place, has an answer. DailyLogDesk Pro keeps it; the tool prints it. From the vendors' own pricing pages, cited below: SafetyCulture lists its Premium plan at $29 per seat per month billed monthly or $24 billed annually, with a free plan for small teams; Contractor Foreman lists its Basic plan at $49 per month for one user. DailyLogDesk Pro is $29 per month for the whole site team.
Questions people ask about what does rams mean
Does RAMS mean the same everywhere in the UK?
Yes; the term is the industry's and the regulations behind it are national.
Is a RAMS the same as a permit?
No; a permit is the site's control for a specific activity, and the RAMS names it at the step.
Is the tool free?
Yes, without an account.