Accident precursors

Accident precursors pro-active identification of safety risks in the chemical process industry / by Patrick Maria Wilhelmus Korvers. - Eindhoven Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, 2004. - Proefschrift. 

A lot of research has to be performed to totally understanding why accidents can still happen in spite of the amount of research performed nowadays. The research presented in this thesis is especially focused on this subject and although accidents will always remain, it helps both practitioners and researchers to have a greater understanding of accident precursors. 

Warnings went unheeded - Findings indicated that most incidents were often preceded by a series of smaller accidents, near misses, or accident precursors. Operations and maintenance procedures must include analysis, root cause investigation, and corrective action. 

A dynamic safety culture recognizes these near-miss incidents as warnings as well as opportunities, and encourages employees to report them so that action can be taken on the warnings before they recur, perhaps with disastrous results. Not only will an organization be addressing what are in many instances accident precursors, but it will also create a communication network from employees directly to the chief executive officer. This communication channel, in many cases anonymous, is one of the key factors in forging a positive safety culture. 

Grabowski M.R., Ayyalasomayajula R, Wang H., Merrick J.R., McCafferty D., Meador M.L., Kiimey C. 2007. Accident Precursors and Safety Nets Initial Results from the Leading Indicators of Safety Project Proceedings of SNAME - Maritime Technology Conference Expo and Ship Production Symposium, Ft Lauderdale, FI, 14 16 November 2007. 

Phi mister, J. R., BierV. M., 2004. Accident Precursor Analysis and Management Reducing Technological Risk through Diligence, National Academies Press. 

As mentioned by Phimister, Bier, and Kunreuther (2004) in Appendix D A Note on Definitions, they define the use of the term accident precursors ... 

This system provided positive feedback for initiators of reports and participants and provided a high degree of rigor around the completion of actions. The focus of the program was on the recognition and reward of safe behaviors and the identification and elimination of unsafe conditions and acts. The reporting of these accident precursors placed the organization in a proactive, forward-driven position in risk reduction efforts, on a daily basis, on the shop floor. 

Bagian, J. P. 2004. The opportunity of precursors. In Accident precursors analysis and management Reducing technological risk through diligence, ed. J. Phimister, V. Bier, and H. Kunreuther, 39. Washington, D.C. The National Academies Press. 

Many may question why this is important to safety and part of the SMS. Many accident precursors have been directly tied to severe staff turnover. This section describes how company staff retention impacts safety and any remedial actions that are taken when turnover exceeds the norm. 

Accident precursors are everywhere, so personnel at all levels must be able to identify and react accordingly to those precursors. 

Operating Plant Data and Severe Accident Precursors... 

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