(56h) Enhanced Process Safety Management System

This abstract is structured to cover milestones in process safety development, challenges to process safety management (PSM) and proposed resolutions that would establish an enhanced process safety management system.

International standards such as ISO, OHSAS and API provide guidance on different Management Systems and their associated elements. In addition, regulation such as CFR 29 and COMAH prescribe requirements to demonstrate that operating risks are curbed to permissible limits especially in operations that pose a significant health, safety or environmental risk. Literature also provides guidance on risk management including risk identification, analysis and assessment, such as DNV RPs. Similarly, the international standards such as API 571 and ASME PCC 3 have also categorized and identified conceivable failure mechanisms, provided guidance on failure criteria for (material selection), triggers (process conditions/parameters), process unit’s prone to the failure mechanism (location), and the associated inspection/monitoring methods. Furthermore, the industry has also provided guidance (API 581) on risk credited (reduction) owed to inspection coverage, frequency of inspection and type of testing. Attempts have been made to establish guidance on integrity operating windows (API 584) in order to build a loss prevention program in conjunction with a risk based program that would effectively manage process safety, an mentioned in API 580. 

Process Safety Management is challenged by three main issues; firstly, the misalignment of risk studies and associated interfaces (QRA, HAZOP, ECA/RAM and RBI) within the operating organization; secondly, the incomplete screening/mapping of failure mechanisms and corresponding resource requirements; thirdly, lacking interface of plant information system with operations, maintenance, inspection and safety, programs. The work in this paper will focus on misalignment of operations, maintenance, inspection and safety plans in a Refinery. An overview of IOW development and interface with the refinery plant information system such as (DSC/SDAS, CMMs, ADMS) will be discussed. In addition an overview of the Refinery design basis including protective systems, material selection and screening/mapping of failure mechanisms. The dependencies mentioned in the aforementioned paragraph are a fundamental part of business development scope in conjunction with regulatory requirements.

The work in this paper shows how unsatisfactory operating performance mandates leveraging the entire organization to mitigate both dimensions of risks and prioritizes safety audits and emergency drills as well as outsourcing and training programs, based on prevailing operating risk practices. The enhanced PSM is a progressive tool that gradually escalates remedial action based on the increase in likelihood of failure (IOW violations), and escalation of consequences (condition/availability/performance of protective systems) and critically the Refinery project performance (decrease in equipment life or inspection interval or regulatory violations). The work in this paper also shows how cost escalation should facilitate audit to identify shortfalls in leadership.