The purpose of a Prestartup / Operational Readiness Review (PSR) is to ensure that initial start-ups, or start-ups following major project work, proceed safely and smoothly. In particular, the PSR will check to make sure that all project activities are complete and that the system is ready for safe operation. It is a tool that the operations and maintenance departments use to make ensure that they have received what they expected to receive from the project team, and that no corners were cut, particularly with regard to safety.

Safety professionals are rightly making increasing use of photographs and videos to train and educate the workforce, and to analyze incidents. In particular, security cameras often provide a fine record of an event as it unfolds.

However, it is important to be careful. Not only can images be deliberately changed, but the camera may not record everything of relevance. The following set of pictures was taken by a process safety professional who was visiting the Grand Canyon as a tourist. So, there is no doubt as to their legitimacy.

This Safety Moment discusses the distinction between Process Safety Assessments and Process Safety Audits. It provides guidance to do with the development of Assessment protocols.

This YouTube video shows an incident in which one man died and six others suffered lost-time injuries. Briefly, this is the time line.

A Confined Space is a space which is large enough for a worker to enter but has limited openings for entry and exit and is not intended for continuous employee occupancy. Entry is considered to have occurred as soon as any part of the entrant's body breaks the plane of an opening into the space. Therefore it is not permissible, for example, to take a quick breath and to put one's head into a vessel for a quick look without having an entry permit. Wherever possible work should be organized such that it can be carried out without anyone needing to enter the confined space.

NORM (Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material) is found in many naturally-occurring materials, including some oil and gas deposits.

Sources of NORM include:

Reproduced with permission

Early in the 20^th century a factory in the town of Pitsea in England manufactured the explosives using nitro-glycerine. 

Fundamentally risk is subjective; it is not possible to define what level of risk is acceptable dispassionately and objectively. Any two risk scenarios are inherently different from one another due to people’s inherent understanding and acceptance of different types of risk, their emotions, memories, hopes and fears.

Factors that affect risk perception include the following: