What is a Safe Work Method Statement?
A Safe Work Method Statement (SWMS) is a document required under Australian Work Health and Safety Regulations before any high-risk construction work begins. It sets out what the work is, the hazards involved, the controls being used to manage those hazards, and who is responsible for each control.
Under the model WHS Regulation (and state variants), a SWMS is mandatory for 18 defined categories of high-risk construction work. These include working at heights above 2 metres, confined space entry, electrical work on energised installations, demolition, asbestos removal, and working near powered mobile plant. The regulator can issue infringement notices and, for serious breaches, prosecute, so the SWMS has to be both on-site and genuinely followed.
Writing a SWMS from a blank template is slow, error-prone and often inconsistent between jobs. A good SWMS generator applies the right legislation for your state, identifies the high-risk activities, and drafts the hierarchy-of-controls structure so you can focus on the site-specific detail.
Who needs a SWMS?
- Construction businesses running any of the 18 high-risk activities listed in WHS Regulations.
- Electrical contractors doing energised work, work near energised parts, or switching operations.
- Plumbers and gas fitters working in confined spaces, at heights, or with hazardous substances.
- Civil and earthworks contractors with excavations over 1.5m, mobile plant, or traffic exposure.
- Any business where a principal contractor requires a SWMS before site access.
Three steps. About a minute.
- 1
Tell us about the work
A guided form captures the activity, site, people and conditions: the inputs your safety document actually needs.
- 2
We ground the draft
The drafting engine applies your state's WHS Act, regulations, codes of practice and any reference documents you've uploaded.
- 3
You review and ship
Edit anything, accept the rest, and download a signature-ready PDF with your logo and the right legislation citations.
How RAE IQ delivers it.
What a RAE IQ SWMS contains
Every SWMS drafted by the platform includes the following sections, matched to the activity and your state:
- Scope of work, site address, preparation date and review date
- High-risk work classification against the 18 categories
- Step-by-step work activities with hazards and controls
- Risk matrix scoring (likelihood × consequence) with residual risk
- PPE requirements with Australian Standard references
- Emergency procedures with local hospital and assembly point
- Training and competency requirements per worker
- Consultation record capturing who was consulted, when, and how
- Worker sign-on and supervisor sign-off
- Full legislation references for your jurisdiction
All 8 Australian jurisdictions
Terminology, legislation citations and regulator names adapt automatically from QLD to NT, including the territories.
Frequently asked questions
Do I legally need a SWMS?
Yes, if the work is one of the 18 high-risk construction work categories defined in Schedule 3 (or equivalent) of your state’s WHS Regulation. These include working at heights above 2m, confined space work, energised electrical work, demolition, asbestos removal and work near powered mobile plant. The SWMS must be prepared before work starts, kept on site while work is in progress, and genuinely followed by workers.
Can I edit the generated SWMS?
Yes. Every section of a RAE IQ SWMS is editable in the browser before you download. The generator gives you a compliant starting point with the right legislation and hierarchy of controls. You add the site-specific detail, the worker names, the equipment list, and anything else unique to the job.
Is the SWMS accepted by principal contractors?
RAE IQ SWMS documents follow the structure required by the WHS Regulation and standard industry practice. Most principal contractors accept any SWMS that meets those requirements. If a principal contractor has a specific template, upload it as a reference document and the generator will align the output to that structure.
How long does it take to generate a SWMS?
Most SWMS drafts complete in 15 to 60 seconds from form submission. Complex jobs with multiple high-risk activities take longer. You can continue working in the dashboard while the draft generates in the background.
What does it cost?
The Free plan includes 3 documents total (SWMS or risk assessment) for one user, enough to try the generator on a real job. The Starter plan at $49/month covers 10 documents/month for sole traders and small crews. The Professional plan at $99/month is unlimited documents plus the full register set. See the pricing page for the full comparison.
Which Australian states and territories are supported?
All eight: Queensland (WHSQ), New South Wales (SafeWork NSW), Victoria (WorkSafe Victoria), South Australia (SafeWork SA), Western Australia (WorkSafe WA), Tasmania (WorkSafe Tasmania), ACT (WorkSafe ACT), and Northern Territory (NT WorkSafe). Terminology, legislation references and regulator names adapt automatically.
Does RAE IQ track the 2026 NSW s26A change?
Yes. From 1 July 2026, section 26A of the NSW WHS Act makes approved Codes of Practice enforceable duties rather than just evidence of how to comply. Every NSW SWMS drafted from that date cites the relevant Codes as duties, not guidance. Read more on our regulatory-update article for the full detail.
Is my data used to train AI models?
No. Customer data is never used to train AI models. Drafting uses Anthropic Claude with structured-output schemas; prompts are short-lived and isolated to your organisation’s tenancy. Every table is protected by row-level security and every upload is encrypted.