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Applying Knowledge Based Hazard Management

By Gary Tomlin, principal consultant safety and risk, GL Noble Denton

There is currently considerable lpg industry emphasis on management commitment, effective leadership, safety management systems and measuring process safety performance.

The UK lp gas industry has dealt with some serious issues recently, including the Competition Commission inquiry into domestic bulk lpg, the ICL public inquiry and the underground metallic lpg gas pipework replacement programme.

After a number of major incidents, including Buncefield, there is greater emphasis in the lpg industry on management commitment, effective leadership, safety management systems and measuring process safety performance. Damages following the Buncefield incident are estimated at up to £750 million, so it’s obvious that low probability, high consequence events can threaten a company’s very existence.

In the Chemical Industries Association’s best practice guide for process safety leadership, Judith Hackitt, Health & Safety Executive chair, says, “Process safety cannot be managed or led from the comfort of the boardroom. Real leaders have to demonstrate their commitment by walking the talk, which means going out and seeing for themselves. All too often, senior managers and directors are far too detached from the reality of what is actually taking place on the ground. Every board also needs to consider what the real vulnerabilities of their process are and address them.”

Process safety in lpg gas relates to the prevention of accidental releases, fires and explosions at storage and operational facilities. It requires a disciplined framework for managing the integrity of lp gas storage and handling systems by applying good design principles and sound engineering and operating practices.

Current UK legislation, such as the Control of Major Accident Hazards Regulations (COMAH), calls for site operators to have a safety management system in place that can address the hazards and ensure an adequate level of safety by reducing risk in accordance with as low as reasonably practicable (ALARP) principles. Unfortunately, the ‘correct’ model of a process safety management system varies from site to site, and determining the most appropriate approach in terms of both safety and cost is becoming increasingly difficult for lpg businesses.

Safety management systems should identify process safety risks and specify critical control measures and maintain their integrity throughout the plant’s life. The lpg gas industry relies on safety systems and operating procedures to maintain and protect its assets. Carefully chosen process safety performance indicators can monitor the status of safety systems and provide an early warning of any deterioration.

Businesses seek to maintain operating and cost effectiveness whilst achieving safe operations. To deliver this, the safety system must ensure there is appropriate measuring, monitoring and auditing of key process safety performance indicators and investigation of any incidents to identify and eliminate root causes. The importance of good corporate memory and the ability to learn lessons from major accident hazard industries cannot be overemphasised.

GL Noble Denton has the expertise to assist lp gas businesses in all aspects of process safety. Since the late 1970s, staff from GL Noble Denton have been involved in a wide range of safety related projects, including fundamental and theoretical research into gas explosions, BLEVE, liquid and gas jet fires and other related hazards.

GL Noble Denton operates a test facility at Spadeadam, Cumbria, used for full-scale major hazard experiments. The data generated at Spadeadam, often through joint industry projects, has been used in the validation of oil and gas industry related models for dispersion, explosions, jet fires, pool fires and other hydrocarbon hazards. Many of the models have been published in refereed journals and presented at industry conferences.

In recent years, the emphasis has changed from pure research to the application of this knowledge to improve safety and influence design through good hazard management. We have developed knowledge-based packages, primarily for calculating the consequences (and risks) of major releases of hazardous materials from onshore plant, offshore facilities and buried pipelines.

These packages contain suites of mathematical models, capable of predicting the various processes associated with gaseous or liquid releases, including outflow, dispersion and accumulation, fires and explosions, and their effects on people and buildings.

Whether to ensure regulatory compliance, or because of internal company governance requirements, understanding the risks and consequences of potentially hazardous operations is essential. The development of predictive models, validated against a wide range of Spadeadam experimental studies, provides GL Noble Denton with the ability to perform safety assessments on lpg storage, pipelines, plant and facilities for risk management, safety reporting and, where appropriate, design modifications.

Whether you require assistance in developing a safety management system, a quantitative risk assessment (QRA) for calculating individual or societal risk level values for comparison with regulatory risk criteria, the preparation of a major accident prevention policy (MAPP) or safety report, the facilitation of a hazard identification workshop, development of performance standards for safety critical systems or process safety performance indicators, a safety integrity level (SIL) assessment, or specialist experimental measurement to demonstrate a safety feature’s effectiveness, GL Noble Denton can help companies meet health, safety and environmental requirements and optimise operational efficiency.

Contact Gary Tomlin at GL Noble Denton on gary.tomlin@gl-group.com