Measuring process safety management

Many companies collect and report process safety incidents. Some companies also collect process safety near misses. These safety near misses are sometimes quality deviations; for example, a process parameter that exceeds the safe operating limit, a critical safety system that is activated, or a minor release of hazardous material occurs. The intent of this article is to show how a quality incident can also be a process safety near-miss and what should be done to recognize its potential severity. Many of the causes of quality problems may be subtle, such as the fouling of cooling surfaces or a control valve that responds slowly. If these issues continue unchecked, the conditions will continue to persist and a more serious event occurs.

“…There are other Process Safety Progress articles that describe measurements that can be used to identify process or quality deviations or warning signs .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Quality problems as process safety warning signs

Herber¹

2013

“…The proceedings paper includes examples for each of the seven steps for creating an SPI program. Additional background for performance indicators are published by AICHE [5–7].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Guidance on developing safety performance indicators

Jennings

Schulberg

2009

This article summarizes a process for developing safety performance indicators. This is a topic of great importance for the measurement of the effectiveness of our PSM systems. The PSM is the OSHA regulation that covers companies in the United States that was issued in the year 1992. Since that time companies in the process industries have made great strides in implementing PSM systems. An important question is “How much progress have we made in actually reducing the number and severity of process events?” Other countries were also concerned about the effectiveness of their programs to address chemical accidents. In response to these concerns, the OECD published the documents described in this article. One of these documents sets out a safety performance indicator process that allows a company to: assess whether it is implementing appropriate chemical safety programs and policies, evaluate whether these programs and policies are achieving their desired objectives, and help determine the extent to which such programs and policies are making a difference. This will allow a company to identify whether there is appropriate emphasis on different aspects of safety management and provide insights needed for setting priorities for future investment of resources. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog 2009

“…Professional publications such as process safety progress (PSP) provide up to date information on management systems being used within the chemical manufacturing industry. The experiences of other professionals who have already been through the learning curve of determining the pros and cons of various management systems are also provided through publications such as PSP; for example, there are more PSP articles are on PSM that will help small companies [2–4].…”

Section: Know What Is Required and What Is Neededmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preparing for process safety management

Goddard¹

2012

Herein, we present the steps a small pharmaceutical research and development company is taking to prepare for process safety management (PSM). Although not regulated by PSM at the present time, the corporate growth plan is such that PSM will be a requirement within the next 2–5 years. When looking at the safety management systems in use by many major companies, safety personnel at small companies can become overwhelmed by the daunting task before them. Preparation is key for a small company that must use available resources efficiently in order to accomplish day to day activities. © 2012 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog, 2012