Stories are the way that human beings best communicate


Many of the articles, safety moments and other publications at this site discuss the all-important topics of communication and story-telling.


You are welcome to use this Safety Moment in your workplace. But there are restrictions — please read Use of Safety Moments.

Copyright © Ian Sutton. 2020. All Rights Reserved.

Systems Completion, Commissioning and Start-up

Did you know that from the perspective of an investor, it is the Commissioning & Start-Up (CSU) phase that defines the project as a success or failure? When a project has been fully commissioned and started-up, it is likely the project will also be a financial success, with investors receiving their expected returns. When a project has not been fully commissioned and is then started-up, it is highly unlikely the project could ever be a financial success. From an investor's perspective, the project is a disaster.

Safety Moment #69: That Would Be Telling

The Kletz Legacy

One of the founders of the process safety discipline was Trevor Kletz (1922-2013). Probably his best eulogy is also the simplest, "He saved lives."

As we reflect on Trevor's contributions it is clear that one of his greatest gifts was that of telling stories. He wrote extensively on technical topics such as hazards analysis and inherent safety, but he is probably best remembered for his story-telling books such as Learning from Accidents and What Went Wrong? Human beings learn best from stories and Trevor knew it.

Standard Examples

Worked examples for Sutton Technical Books

We have developed a set of process safety management standard examples that are used to illustrate some of the concepts and ideas developed in our publications. 

Example 1 - Facility Design

A process consists of four operating units and a utilities section. A schematic of the system is shown in Figure 1.