2016 Photo of the Week #28 (Hotwork PPE?)
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2016 Video of the Week #28 (Crane Basket Fatality)
WARNING! Viewer Discretion is STRONGLY advised, video captures the fatal impact of the personnel basket as it fell 60′ from the crane to the rig floor…. Membership Required You must be a member to access this content.View Membership LevelsAlready a member? Log in here...
NBIC’s NATIONAL BOARD BULLETIN hits a homerun for process safety practitioners!
As I have said in the past, the National Board publishes a FREE magazine, The Bulletin, each quarter that almost always contains information that we can use in our daily management of chemical processes. The best part of these FREE articles are they come from a VERY RELIABLE source and are written in such a…...
FY 2016 U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board Management Challenges (EPA Office of Inspector General)
Attention to CSB management challenges could result in stronger results and protection for the public, and increased confidence in management integrity and accountability. Based on our continuous audit work, CSB public hearings, congressional hearings and CSB board meetings, EPA’s IG identified three (3) management challenges and one internal control weakness related to operational controls. The…...
EPA RMP Citations @ meat processing facility (NH3 & $82K)
Respondent operates a meat processing facility that uses 24,300 pounds of ammonia as its refrigerant. Respondent has one RMProgram level 3 covered process, an ammonia refrigeration process, which stores or otherwise uses a toxic chemical in an amount exceeding its applicable threshold of 10,000. During calendar year 2014, EPA opened an RMProgram compliance monitoring investigation…...
Hazards of Pressure Testing Fire Extinguishers
On October 29, 2009, Employee #1 was performing pressures tests on 30-pound fire extinguisher bodies, using a test machine run in automatic mode. Employee #1 loaded four bodies/cylinders into the machine and started the test cycle by activating the two-hand control. The machine submerged the fire extinguishers into a water bath, and the bodies were…...
Pressure Testing gone bad (Fatality)
On September 24, 2010, Employee #1 was standing five feet away from a pressure test being conducted with nitrogen. Inside the test, the cylinder was a downhole tool used in oil and gas production. For unknown reasons, the tool inside the test cylinder exploded knocking the threaded end cap off the test cylinder. The explosion caused the straps…...
NBIC introduces a NEW Certification Mark for Pressure Relief Valve Certified Testing Organizations
The new T/O program formalizes the “Test Only” process by providing National Board certification to organizations conducting in-service testing of pressure relief valves. The program includes an adjustment for restoring nameplate set pressure and provides customer and inspector confidence in testing capabilities. T/O Certificates of Authorization will be extended to current VR certificate holders. New applicants can obtain a T/O Certificate of Authorization by…...
2016 Video of the Week #27 (Crane flips)
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2016 Photo of the Week #27 (Fall Protection can be electrifying)
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“Previous employer citations” may not be REPEAT citations (OSHRC)
As a result of a 2012 inspection, Respondent was cited for five repeat violations, which were issued on March 27, 2013. The citations upon which the repeat violations were based were issued to Wynnewood Refining while owned and operated by Gary Williams Energy (GWE), most of which became final orders of the Commission in April…...
Managing boilers attached to a PSM/RMP covered process
Last week I posted a June 2016 OSHRC decision in which an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) sided with OSHA on a number of PSM citations regarding a fatal boiler explosion that occurred within a PSM-covered process. Since that posting, I have received dozens of e-mails asking for more explanation and how I suggest managing this…...