(190b) Rapid Assessment Tool for Process Safety Management (PSM) Systems

Senior management at facilities with significant process hazards have two key responsibilities related to process safety management (PSM).  These responsibilities are:

(1) Ensure that the design of the management systems for process safety is adequate;

(2) Ensure that the management systems are implemented as designed.

As part of the second responsibility, full compliance audits are one method of evaluating PSM systems, but this type of audit can be resource-intensive. Besides, companies are reluctant to carry out compliance audits because of the cost and planning required for their execution. This presents a problem as areas of relatively high process risk may exist which are not effectively managed.

This presentation describes a simple assessment tool designed to rapidly and effectively identify areas where a process safety management system is doing well, and areas where opportunities for improvement in the system exist.  Using the tool is not a substitute for a full assessment, but a way to ensure that process safety execution is going in the right direction, and addresses the areas with the most need for improvement first. The tool focuses on providing support to senior leadership.

The tool consists of 10 questions which are posed by an assessor who is an experienced process safety specialist, to be answered by high level site management and their representatives. The questions are based on generally accepted knowledge of the key drivers of a successful and self-sustaining PSM program. The answers provided to the questions, their analysis, discussion and the practical recommendations for improvement provided by the assessor will be useful to site management in designing and implementing a more effective PSM system.