Hydrocarbon Processing - May 2021 - 84

Environment and Safety
Web-enabled shift supervisor descriptive
logs promote increased communication
about shift activity and transparency.
Temporary fixes performed to an issue
or a malfunction that requires follow-up
and/or similar scenarios are appropriately communicated, documented and
tracked within the system.
Non-routine operations. From 1970-
1989, 60%-75% of major accidents in
continuous processes occurred during
non-routine modes (principally startup
and online maintenance modes). This
trend has continued unabated for most
of the process industry to the present
day. Therefore, a greater emphasis must
be given to non-routine operations in the
plant. Although routine operations are
of high priority for the operator, personnel are responsible for taking care of all
activities that pertain to their area. The
following are several critical, non-routine
jobs that an operator handles:
1. Performing non-routine
inspections, such as reformer tube
metal temperature monitoring,
electrical systems and infrared
thermography, surface vibration
monitoring, relief valve leak
testing, fugitive emissions testing
and checks on rupture disk
integrity
2. Attending hazard and operability
(HAZOP) study meetings
3. Attending meetings regarding
plant modifications and standard
operating procedure (SOP)
change reviews
4. Conducting plant tours for
visitors and contractors
5. Reviewing plant piping and
instrumentation diagrams.
Effectively following up on non-routine jobs improves plant reliability. The
proprietary software helps operators
streamline their daily activities, along
with non-routine and case-based tasks.
This software addresses the following
critical parameters that enhance the safety
and efficiency of non-routine operations:
* Procedure accuracy and clarity
(the most cited root cause of
accidents):
° A procedure typically needs to
be 95% accurate to help reduce
human error; humans tend to
compensate for the remaining 5%
of errors in a written procedure.
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MAY 2021 | HydrocarbonProcessing.com

A procedure must convey
the information (there are
approximately 25 rules for
structuring procedures to
accomplish this) and be
convenient to use.
° Checklist features should be
used and enforced, either in the
procedure or in a supplemental
document. All the SOPs and
checklists are made available
in a digital format through the
proprietary software.
* Training, knowledge and skills:
° Initial training must be useful.
Demonstration-based training
should be conducted on each
proactive and reactive (e.g.,
alarm response) task. Making
the training materials accessible
(such as taking quizzes through
integration with learning
management systems) greatly
enhances the learning experience
during operator training.
° Ongoing human action
validation is required and
usually must be repeated (in
either actual performance
or drills/practice) at least
once per year. For human
factors, the action must also
be demonstrated to be quick
enough to be effective. This
is completed by offering
recertifications and by
providing safety videos and
other multimedia materials
that are designed to refresh the
operator's memory.
° The human performance must
be documented and retained
to demonstrate that the error
rates chosen are valid. Since
every action is documented
electronically, the operator can
be evaluated quickly and then
efficiently trained on how to
prevent the errors in the future.
* Communication:
Miscommunication-included in
instructions, a set of instructions or
the status of a process-is one of
the most common causes of human
error in the workplace. Proper
documentation through electronic
operator logbooks helps maintain
better communication across all
parties of management and shifts.

* Human system interface: Factors
to control include layout of
equipment, displays, controls and
their integration to displays, alarm
nature, control of alarm overload,
labeling, color coding, and foolproofing measures, among others.
Operators are provided with digital
documents that are critical for
performing their job. These digital
documents are available at the touch
of a finger, saving a trip to the control
room or administration building.

°

Takeaway. We live in a digital era where,

every day, decision-making processes
are influenced by data and information
systems, which has helped to increase
efficiency by avoiding mistakes and unwanted delays. The process of offering a
similar workplace approach and empowering people to have the right data and
documents relieves personnel of handling
stressful situations not with just memory
and experience, but also with tools and
technology. This, in turn, improves the
quality of the people and significantly reduces preventable failures and downtime
attributed to human error, resulting in
millions of dollars in potential savings.
a

NOTE
Fitiri's PlantMS software

ARUNKUMAR MURUGAN is the
Director of Software Engineering
at Fitiri. He has an extensive
background in software engineering
and in developing solutions to
automate and augment personnel
at their work environment. After
joining Fitiri, he has been involved in interacting
with ammonia plant operators, supervisors and
managers, as well as in the development of PlantMS,
a comprehensive plant operations management
solution. Mr. Murugan earned a Bch degree in
information technology from Anna University in India.
VENKAT PATTABATHULA is the
Principal Consultant at SVP
Chemical Plant Services. Prior to
this position, he was the global
ammonia technology manager
for Incitec Pivot Ltd., where he
supported manufacturing facilities
in Australia and North America. His specialties include
process design, project development, commissioning,
plant operation, process safety management and
manufacturing excellence programs. Mr. Pattabathula
has been a member of AIChE since 1989, and has
been an elected member of the Ammonia Safety
Committee of AIChE since 2005. He is a chartered
professional engineer of Engineers Australia and a
registered professional engineer of Queensland. Mr.
Pattabathula earned an MTech degree in chemical
engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology.
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Hydrocarbon Processing - May 2021

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