Integrated Alarm Management and Human Factor Analysis for Pipeline Industry

Integrated Alarm Management and Human Factor Analysis
for Pipeline Industry

Abstract

Yu-tao
ZHANG ,Hai-qing WANG*, Hang WANG

China
University of Petroleum£¨East China£©, Department of Safety Science and Engineering, Qingdao,
266580,China

To improve the
operation excellence of oil & gas pipeline, a new design scheme of avaiable
alarm management is proposed, which includes a plan for control room
management, a project for alarm rationalization and a solution for several
typical alarms in pipeline industry, according to the API-1167 standard
(Recommended Practice for Pipeline SCADA Alarm Management). This standard was
published by American Petroleum Institute (API) in 2010, which provide
recommended practices on alarm management to the pipeline companies.

An idea is
discussed that control room was classified three levels, as central control
room, area control room and station control room. The framework
and application process of three-level-control room is shown in Fig1. Different control room has
different responsibility. There are great majority of alarms that should be
responded without delay by the controllers in station and should not be
represented to the senior controllers. There are some alarms happened between
station and station, for example, overpressure or low pressure before getting
into station and water hammer should be represented to the controllers in area
control room. If the alarm isn¡¯t responded by both station and area control
room, it should be sent to central controllers. Central controllers also handle
significant alarms, such as shut down along the whole line.

The alarm
philosophy is developed, which is a comprehensive document that covers all the
life cycle of alarm management. Alarm rationalization is an important step in
alarm program to control the alarm rate, and thus the alarm management becomes
more efficient and effective. As control room management is also human factors
management, by analyzing the human error probability in different situations
the importance of the control room management is demonstrated.

This paper
presents rationalization programs and recommended practices for these alarms
that are due to the peculiarity of pipeline, such as water hammer alarm. The
automatic control, the relief valve setting of water hammer, return line
setting of main pump and pre-protection of the SCADA system are effective ways
to prevent the water hammer alarms. With the simulation analysis of water
hammer, reducing the outbound pressure and stopping the pump in the previous
station can be used to protect the pipeline and equipments.

Some creative
and practical measures are proposed for the alarm management in pipeline
industry. The importance of the establishment of the three-level-control room
and the human factors management are demonstrated; a rationalization methodology about water hammer alarm in
pipeline industry is improved and innovated.

Keywords: alarm management; pipeline industry; control room; human factors;
water hammer

 Fig1.
The framework and application
process of three-level-control room