Contingency plan

Contingency plan
For the play of this title, see The Contingency Plan.

A contingency plan is a plan devised for an exceptional risk which is impractical or impossible to avoid. Contingency plans are often devised by governments or businesses who want to be prepared for events which, while highly unlikely, may have catastrophic effects. For example, suppose many employees of a company are traveling together on an aircraft which crashes, killing all aboard. The company could be severely strained or even ruined by such a loss. Accordingly, many companies have procedures to follow in the event of such a disaster. The plan may also include standing policies to mitigate a disaster's potential impact, such as requiring employees to travel separately or limiting the number of employees on any one aircraft.

During times of crisis, contingency plans are often developed to explore and prepare for any eventuality. During the Cold war, many governments made contingency plans to protect themselves and their citizens from nuclear attack. Examples of contingency plans designed to inform citizens of how to survive a nuclear attack are the booklets Survival Under Atomic Attack, Protect and Survive, and Fallout Protection, which were issued by the British and American governments. Today there are still contingency plans in place to deal with terrorist attacks or other catastrophes.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has published a contingency planning guide for Information Technology Systems (2002).[1]

In the United States

In the United States, all HAZMAT operations require Contingency Plans.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency‎ through RCRA and EPCRA has defined specific formats for Local Emergency Planning and the National Contingency Plan[2].

See also

Emblem-money.svg Business_and_economics portal

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • contingency plan — ➔ plan2 * * * contingency plan UK US noun [C] ► a plan that is made for dealing with an emergency, or with something that might possibly happen and cause problems in the future: a contingency plan for sth/doing sth »Companies wishing to apply for …   Financial and business terms

  • contingency plan — planas nenumatytoms aplinkybėms statusas T sritis Gynyba apibrėžtis Planas, parengtas galimoms operacijoms, kurių planavimo veiksniai nustatyti ar numanomi. Šis planas, kaip pagrindas tolesniam planavimui, rengiamas kiek įmanoma detalesnis,… …   NATO terminų aiškinamasis žodynas

  • Contingency Plan 8022 — Die Fähigkeit zu einem „Global Strike“ (etwa: weltweiten Schlag) ist seit der Jahrtausendwende Kernbestandteil der Militärstrategie der US Streitkräfte, siehe auch unter Nuklearstrategie. Das Pentagon plant unter anderem, ballistische… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • contingency plan — A plan that is formulated to cope with some event or circumstances that may occur in the future. For example, the contingency may be an increase in sales, in which case the plan would include means of increasing production very quickly …   Big dictionary of business and management

  • contingency plan — 1. a course of action to be followed if a preferred plan fails or an existing situation changes. 2. a plan or procedure that will take effect if an emergency occurs; emergency plan. * * * …   Universalium

  • contingency plan — noun An alternative plan to be put into operation if needed, especially in case of emergencies, or if a primary plan fails Syn: Plan B …   Wiktionary

  • contingency plan — 1. a course of action to be followed if a preferred plan fails or an existing situation changes. 2. a plan or procedure that will take effect if an emergency occurs; emergency plan …   Useful english dictionary

  • contingency plan — /kən tɪndʒənsi plæn/ noun a plan which will be put into action if something happens which no one expects to happen …   Marketing dictionary in english

  • contingency plan — /kən tɪndʒənsi plæn/ noun a plan which will be put into action if something happens which no one expects to happen …   Dictionary of banking and finance

  • contingency plan — cotton n …   English expressions

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”