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Process Safety Management: Some Lessons from Recent Incidents Presentation to the Introduction to Environmental, Health & Safety Workshop CSChE 2008 Conference Ottawa, ON, October 21, 2008. Graham Creedy, P.Eng, FCIC, FEIC Senior Manager, Responsible Care®
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Process Safety Management: Some Lessons from Recent Incidents Presentation to theIntroduction to Environmental, Health & Safety WorkshopCSChE 2008 ConferenceOttawa, ON, October 21, 2008 Graham Creedy, P.Eng, FCIC, FEIC Senior Manager, Responsible Care® Canadian Chemical Producers’ Association (613) 237-6215, gcreedy@ccpa.ca
Origins of this Workshop • Why Process Safety Management? • Knowing (and meeting) the regulations is important; but is not enough – especially in Canada • Need to Know: • How to spot the hazards • Why and How defences fail • How to communicate
Personal safety hazards can sometimes be easy to spot; but major hazards are often not obvious • Keep an open mind about hazards – do not assume that if it is important, someone else would have noted it • Know the basic hazard identification & risk assessment techniques and when to use them • If using a contractor for this, know enough to watch for competence
Why and How Defences Fail • People often assume systems work as intended, despite warning signs • Examples of good performance are cited as representing the whole, while poor ones are overlooked or soon forgotten • Failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA) should include human and organizational aspects as well as equipment, physical and IT systems
Avonmouth, UK 1996 • Although not recent, it is a classic example of a latent failure • Hazard of material known, but lack of awareness of potential system failure mode leads to defective procedure design
Ghent, WV 2007 • Hazards well-known and supposedly covered by equipment and procedure design • Latent errors in procedure execution allow actual practice to deviate from assumed
Danvers, MA 2006 • Hazards known, but defences compromised by apparently benign change • Latent error in procedure design creates vulnerability to likely execution error
Port Wentworth, GA 2007 • Hazard of material not obvious (despite history) • Latent error allowed dust to accumulate, creating conditions for subsequent events
Reason’s “Cheese Model” James Reason, presentation to Eurocontrol 2004
The Process Safety Management Guide • Summarizes CCPS approach in handy, short booklet • Available as free download from CSChE’s PSM division website, in English and French (or as booklet, for nominal fee) • Website:http://psm.chemeng.ca
A page from the “HISAT” Site Self-Assessment Tool, available on the PSM Division website http://psm.chemeng.ca
Understanding and sizing up the hazards • The US Chemical Safety Board website www.csb.gov has case studies and videos – great for understanding and “Could it happen here?” • Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) guide • Easy to use • Describes hazard evaluation procedures • Explains when and how to use them www.aiche.org/ccps
Percent adoption Innovators Laggards Early Majority Late Majority Early Adopters When communicating, remember the New Product Introduction Curve • Categories differ by ability and more importantly, motivation • Where is your org, and your boss, on this curve?
Dealing with a Safety (or Engineering) Problem • Finding out who you’re dealing with • Where is the organization on the curve? (generally, and re the specific issue or problem) • Where are the people you’re dealing with on the curve? (generally, and re the issue or problem) • Finding out what to do • “Benchmark” – don’t try to reinvent the wheel unless you’re sure there isn’t one already (or you’ve time and it’s fun to do so) • Find out what others are doing about it • Read the instructions • Identify/define the issue • If it’s likely to be regulated, check with government agencies, trade associations, web, internet • If not regulated but likely good industry practice, check suppliers, other users of same material or item, other users of similar items, other industry contacts – but test the info!!! (cross-check, ask if it makes sense) • Check standard reference works,(Lees, CCPS, etc) • Doing it • Try to think of all situations that are likely to occur (process, eqpt, people) • “KISS”, keep it user-friendly, show basis for decisions if practical to do so • Follow up afterwards to see how it’s working