Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule amending its Risk Management Program (RMP) regulations to reduce the likelihood of accidental releases at chemical facilities and improve emergency response activities when those releases occur. This rule is the latest in a series of actions the federal government has taken in consultation with industry, […]
The 2015 edition of the International Fire Code (IFC) introduces how hot work on flammable and combustible liquid storage tanks shall be carried out and the requirements are quite specific. And for those of you working in states that have adopted the 2015 IFC as your state fire code, I have posted ALL of the HW requirements from
The purpose of welding inspection is to determine if a weldment meets the acceptance criteria of a specific code, standard, or other document. The welding inspector must be thoroughly familiar with welding processes, welding procedures, welder qualifications, materials, the limitation of weld testing, be able to read drawings, prepare and keep records, prepare and make
A stationary source has a mixture above the threshold. At standard temperature and pressure, the mixture does not meet the criteria for a National Fire Protection Association flammability rating of 4 (NFPA 4). At elevated temperatures and pressures, however, the mixture meets the NFPA 4 criteria. Is this process covered under the risk management program
I am in no way a big government kind of guy, but I do believe in having an established set of rules (most safety rules) by which all players must play by. Earlier this year in Boston, MA there was a fatality at a seafood processing facility caused by a release of Anhydrous Ammonia (NH3)
Sorted by # of facilities Chemical Name Chemical Type # of facilities Pounds in processes Ammonia (anhydrous) Toxic 7,126 9,956,483,361 Chlorine Toxic 2497 832,843,797 Flammable Mixture Flammable 852 39,286,922,024 Propane Flammable 642 11,725,870,245 Sulfur dioxide (anhydrous) Toxic 469 47,307,360 Ammonia (conc 20% or greater) Toxic 459 214,498,002 Butane Flammable 395 8,435,032,565 Isobutane [Propane, 2-methyl] Flammable
Have you ever wondered which state has the most/least # of RMP facilities? How about the Top Ten Chemicals in RMP and by state? If you have wondered, wonder no more…
When working with the ASME B31 series for piping installation, many of the requirements are based on the “Category” of the fluid which will be traveling within the pipe. Of course, the higher the hazard, the higher the safety is necessary for your piping circuits. This is NOT my creation, and to be perfectly honest,
Those who live in the world of Process Safety know all about “Line Break/Process Opening” and the lack of OSHA guidance or a standard to control this highly hazardous task. So I try to educate all that will listen by sharing “lessons learned” from previous incidents. This post is an attempt to show that although
Much like OSHA’s Letter of Interpretation, EPA has a series of “Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)” in regards to their Risk Management Plan rule. Recently EPA answered a question regarding their take on “co-location” in which a tank with 1,000,000 pounds of toluene diisocyanate (TDI), which is covered under the RMP rule, but not under OSHA PSM.
Each year about this time I get at least one phone call from a member/client about their annual “holiday inspection”; trust me when I say the term “holiday” has absolutely no relation to the Thanksgiving or Christmas holidays! However, their CMMS has spit out a work order that calls for a piping circuit to be
One of my all time favorite, and most reliable, sources of safety information is the FM Global Data Sheet library. And as I have said for several years now, EVERYONE can get FREE access to this library. If you work for a company that does not want to spend the money on published safety standards
