Safe Systems action plans

Employers, at a minimum, must have an emergency action plan that will facilitate the prompt evacuation of employees when there is an unwanted release of a highly hazardous chemical. This means that the employer s plan will be activated by an alarm system to alert employees when to evacuate, and that employees who are physically impaired will have the necessary support and assistance to get them to a safe zone. The intent of these requirements is to alert and move employees quickly to a safe zone. The use of process control centers or buildings as safe areas is discouraged. Recent catastrophes indicate that lives are lost in these structures because of their location and because they are not necessarily designed to withstand over-pressures from shock waves resulting from explosions in the process area. 

The third and final phase of the decommissioning activity was the placement of reactor and nonreactor systems in a radiological and industrially safe condition. The planning for this phase included a detailed system-by-system evaluation to determine necessary actions based on the following definition ... 

Employers are required to have an employee alarm system which provides warning for emergency actions as called for in the emergency action plan, or for reaction time for safe escape of employees from the work area or the workplace. 

While many governments purport to develop strategies based upon Safe Systems thinking, the action plans that follow from those strategies still very much depend upon what politicians perceive to be publicly acceptable. They remain, for the most part, demonstrably reactive. 

The Safe System relies on considering a number of key cornerstones, which contribute together in any crash to the severity of the outcome. However, the benefit of the Safe System approach is that action taken in each cornerstone area can often be applied together in a complementary way. Careful planning of the potential individual adjustments that could be effectively applied at particular locations, or preferably at locations or along lengths across the network, can maximise the traffic safety performance benefits achieved. 

Enlist support for action on specific roads or road sections with high crash numbers. The 33,900 group has made a promising start along these lines with a push for action on a section of road in far north Queensland where local support and industry support are both high. The action plans will be anchored in the Safe System approach and will not mirror the traditional engineering black spot treatment protocol. 

The basic assmnption for the operation of distribution systems of medium voltage (MV) and also of other voltage levels is to ensure rehable, safe and high-quahty supplies of electrical energy. Investments into modem equipment for the automation of operation of distribution systems are one of important factors that fundamentally influence the reliability of supplies of electrical energy. Here, it is necessary to use as a basis the duration and the number of failure states, planned actions, repairs in the framework of controlled mainteiiance plan and also building of new facilities. 

Safely barriers are defined as physical and/or nonphysical means planned to prevent, control, or mitigate imdesired events or accidents. The means may range from a single technical unit or human actions, to a complex socio-technical system. It is useful to distinguish between barrier functions and barrier systems. Barrier functions describe the purpose of safety barriers or what the safety barriers shall do in order to prevent, control, or mitigate undesired events or accidents. Barrier systems describe how a barrier function is reahzed or executed. If the barrier system is functioning, the barrier function is performed. If a barrier function is performed successfiiUy, it should have a direct and significant effect on the occurrence and/or consequences of an undesired event or accident (Sklet 2005). 

Further issues mentioned are means of exit. In general, all exits must be kept clear of any obstructions or impediments. Emergency escape procedures are also mandated by OSHA to insure an effective and safe evacuation route. In light of emergency actions, alarm systems and detail planning routes should be utilized by all employers. 

SIS This is the first automatic protection layer to BPCS and second overall layer of protection. It is desired that this shall be independent of BPCS. Even if these are combined it is necessary to ensure that single failure does not take toll of safety. SIS may stop part of plant operation and/or diverts some flow safely, etc. It may have separate set of instrumentation to detect and take safety action in the event of instrument/system failure. It has to be more aggressive than BPCS for safety functions. Under SIS, there will be several interlocks and protections to save the system and in many places like off shore design, ESD is considered as last resort or emergency plan achievable through PEs. 

A Water Safety Plan is a comprehensive risk assessment and risk management approach that encompasses aU steps in water supply from catchment to consumer. It comprises as a minimum the three essential actions that are the responsibihty of the drinking-water supplier in order to ensure that drinking-water is safe. These are a system assessment, effective operational monitoring, and management. 

Plans were underway to change from a manual main feedwater system in a pressurized water reactor at a nuclear power plant to an automatic switchover. The concern was whether the manual switchover was a safe procedure to follow during the transition to the automatic system. In different plants, this switchover could take from 5 to 60 min to perform. If the action was not performed in time, then the steam generator might run dry and cause a safety hazard. 

Once the automatic systems have brought the plant to a stable condition following a reactor trip, the operator may take manual control of the plant and proceed with orderly cooldown of the reactor in accordance with the normal, abnormal, or emergency operating procedures. This is not required to maintain the plant in a stable and safe condition however, it is clearly desirable from a commercial point of view. The exact actions taken and the time at which these actions occur depend on what systems are available and the plans for further plant operation. 

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