Operations, Maintenance, and Modifications

Siting, both location and layout, is critical for inherently safer plants. Evaluate siting with respect to the risk imposed by the process on the population, environment, adjacent facilities, and community. These evaluations apply to small revisions as well as major new processes. 

Layout considerations include avoiding crane lifts over operating equipment, especially equipment that contains hazardous materials, and, in particular, hazardous materials held under pressure or high temperature. Allow space for maintenance access without damage to other equipment. Apply risk management concepts to the layout and siting. 

Additional references on inherently safer features include  

Additional considerations presented in subsequent chapters include  

A primary objective of any safety program is to maintain or reduce the level of risk in the process. The design basis, especially inherently safer features that are built into the installation, must be documented. Management of change programs must preserve and keep the base record current and protect against elimination of inherently safer features. For identical substitution, the level of risk in the process is 

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The management prt ram should establish and implement safe work practices. These practices should be designed to minimize the risks associated with operating, maintenance, and modification activities and the handling of materials and substances that could affect... 

Safe work practices for all personnel, including contractors, should provide for the safe conduct of operating, maintenance, and modification activities, including simultaneous operations. Specifically, safe work practices should cover ... 

Quality aspects must be considered at every stage in the specification, design, construction, testing, commissioning, operation, maintenance and modification of the PES, in relation to both hardware and software. The level of quality is determined by the procedural and engineered measures for the avoidance of errors in design and other defects which could cause systematic failure. 

Skjerve, A.B., Sarshar, S., Rindahl, G., Braseth, A.O., Randem, H.O., Falmyr, O., Sand, T, Tveiten, C.K. 2011. The Integrated Operations Maintenance and Modification Planner (lO-MAP) The first usability evaluation—study and first findings. Center for Integrated Operations in the Petroleum Industry, Project 4.1 Future Collaboration Environments, Halden, Norway, 2011. 

Description The guidelines have been prepared to provide guidance on good practice for the design, operation, maintenance and modification of instrument-based protective systems on oil and gas installations. The guidelines advocate and translate a risk-based approach to the specification and design of protective instrumentation... 

The facility tagout program shall provide protection for personnel and facility components and systems during operation, maintenance, and modification activities. In addition, provisions within the tagout program shall provide for independent verification (in-process inspection) of the removal from service and restoration to service of safety-related or important-to-safety systems and for activities that have a potential for impacting worker safety. 

One practical example of the consequences of change control is that in the regime of system/instrument change control, hardware, software and operational aspects such as routine operation, maintenance and data integrity are locked down in fixed configurations. Any modification that has not been anticipated in the initial qualification requires testing and documentation. 

Technical and engineering support is provided by TA-V analysts and designers. Maintenance and modifications of the equipment is performed by the facility operators, except for a major construction or modification or skilled craft work requiring a qualified plumber, electrician, or carpenter. If work on safety systems is performed by non-operators, the work is overseen by the operators and a checkout of the safety system is performed by the operators at the conclusion of the work to assure that the system(s) operates within specifications before operations are resumed. Facility Modification Requests (FMRs) are reviewed by an independent safety review committee, the Radiological and Criticality Safety Committee (RCSC), so that potential safety concerns are identified and referred to the proper level of line management or the DOE for resolution and approval. 

An identified stated equivalent set of guidelines for process safety is the American Petroleum Institute s Reconunended Practice 7S0. RP750 is intended to assist in the management of process hazards. The objective of the recommended practice is to help prevent the occurrence of, or minimize the consequences of, catastrophic releases of toxic or explosive materials. The practice addresses the management of process hazards in design, construction, start-up, operation, inspection, maintenance, and modification of facilities with the potential for catastrophic release (American Petroleum Institute 1997). 

Have the provisions been specified for maintaining safe operation during maintenance and modification of ... 

Management of functionol sofety (douse 5) Determination of Function and integrity (clouse 8) Verification and volidotion(clouse 7,12.3,12.7,13 15 Operation, maintenance omd modification (colsue 16 ond 17)... 

In some cases, the maintenance has to be done at particular times. Continuous process plants are an example. They are run for prolonged periods and then shut down only at predetermined intervals for maintenance and modification/upgrade purposes. Electrical components, vital to the operation of the plant, usually merit inspection on each such occasions and any parts, subject to wear deterioration, should be replaced prematurely to insure against failure operation. Brushes, contactor contacts and the oil of oil-immersed switchgear and control gear, are examples. 

Decision gate four (DG4) involves the go-ahead for start-up of production of oil and gas. Norskoil s operations organisation is responsible for this decision. All essential processes, drilling, utility and safety systems must be ready, as well as the organisation and the procedures for the operation of the platform. Production also involves maintenance and modifications of the installation. Again, Norskoil as the operator has the main responsibility for safety during all these activities. 

Overall operation, maintenance and repair To operate, maintain and repair the E/E/PE safety-related systems in order that the required functional safety is maintained EUC and the EUC control system E/E/PE safety-related systems. Requirement for the modification or retrofit under the procedures for the management of functional safety Continuing achievement of the required functional safety for the SIS Chronological records of operation repair and maintenance... 

One of the purposes of ROSI IV.11 is to provide specific instructions to assure that the operations organization controls the operational status of critical reactor related equipment, including systems outside the reactor building. This ROSI addresses reporting work progress for maintenance and modification activities and provides instructions for the test coordinator. 

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