(69c) MOC 102 – Get More out of MOC Systems Than "Just Managing Changes”

Management of Change (MOC) is the cornerstone of a successful risk-based process safety (RBPS) program. Safe operation and maintenance of facilities that manufacture or store hazardous chemicals require robust process safety management (PSM) systems. The MOC element of an RBPS establishes a formal, documented, authorization process for any proposed changes, to manage changes which may introduce unexpected new hazards or increase the risk of existing ones. Most companies have established an MOC system to evaluate and approve (or reject) proposed changes, leading managers and supervisors to assume that this PSM element is well in hand. Now that the MOC system is up and running, however, have you noticed “backsliding”, complacency, or just going through the motions? Or perhaps there is reasonably good usage of the system in your company, but you consider that there ought to be more value to be gotten from the MOC system data.

This paper builds on last year’s GCPS presentation “MOC 101 – Fundamentals for Effective Change.” Several key practices, including better use of metrics and PSM auditing, can be put in place to improve an existing MOC system, for performance and efficiency enhancements, as well as for continual improvement. These will be discussed, along with examples from MOC systems at several chemical and petrochemical plants, which illustrate ongoing improvement.