As a process safety professional, what do we see and what comes to mind when we see a pipe flange like the one shown here? In this small and simple picture, how many sections of OSHA’s PSM standard (or EPA’s RMP rule) impact this pipe flange; better yet, can we name all the RGAGEPS that […]
UPDATE 10/18/2016 – Hawaii Occupational Safety and Health Office reduced the number of violations cited from 15 to nine and lowering fines from $115,500 to $69,300. About a month after the blast, the Honolulu Fire Department said its investigation determined the explosion was likely caused by a digital pressure gauge in the tank that produced an
Full disclosure, I do PSM/RMP audits, but that does not change the facts that I will present in this article. Over the past couple of years, I have seen first-hand companies cancel or fail to schedule their 3-year PSM/RMP audits because their State EPA, Federal EPA or OSHA did a PSM/RMP inspection at their facility
On March 23rd a worker at a seafood processing building/warehouse in Boston, MA was killed in a catastrophic release of anhydrous ammonia. Since then there has been much speculation as to how this tragedy occurred and whether or not the facility’s refrigeration process fell under OSHA’s PSM and EPA’s RMP standards. As it appears at
One of the means to protect an OUTSIDE atmospheric storage tank is a weak roof-to-shell seam. As we can see in this video, a diesel tank at a wharf in Apia, Samoa was equipped with such a means of fire venting. I am assuming this on the basis of the information we can obtain from the
Sometimes I come across some items as I do work for clients that are priceless in helping us make our case for safety and this one is a “feather in our [hard] hat”. Apparently some employers in the state of California decided that using pressure vessels built to some code other than ASME Section VIII
On April 9, 1998, an 18,000-gallon propane tank exploded (BLEVE) at the Herrig Brothers farm in Albert City, Iowa. The explosion killed two volunteer firefighters and injured seven other emergency response personnel. Several buildings were also damaged by the blast. CLICK HERE for the CSB Report.
This week we got word that the Olin Corp has announced that they will be reconfiguring their Henderson, NV facility to make bleach. This is the facility that in 1991 when owned and operated by Pioneer Chlor Alkali Company, Inc. had the largest Chlorine release on record, 70-100 tons of chlorine. The response to the
Imagine my surprise when reading the latest edition of “Chemical Process Safety (Fourth Edition), Learning from Case Histories“, August 2015, by Roy E. Sanders when I came across a very nice mention of SAFTENG.net. In 2014 I received some very nice feedback from Mr. Sanders regarding my work with the Incident Alerts and my Process Safety
One of the weakest elements in OSHA’s PSM and EPA’s RMP standards is the Incident Investigation element. Anyone who has performed a PHA or Audit can tell you that the difference of opinions range from aggressive to the criminally insane! Personally I have heard some of the lamest excuses for not investigating Loss of Primary
The accident occurred on Friday 6/14/2013 at around 6 p.m. in a section of the plant that had been shut for maintenance when a nitrogen vessel ruptured during off-loading. The blast killed one worker and sent seven others to the hospital. OSHA investigated and issued the following 5(a)(1) citation regarding the design of the process
As the debate rages on whether an intervening valve can be placed between a relief valve and the vessel it is protecting, I offer up NFPA 59A as another source for the answer YES. In fact, NFPA 59A (2016) requires either a stop valve or RV tree so that the RV’s can be changed without
