Process safety management is a regulation, promulgated by the U.S.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration. A process is any
activity or combination of activities including any use, storage,
manufacturing, handling or the on-site movement of highly hazardous chemicals
as defined by OSHA and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Definition Process safety management is an
analytical tool focused on preventing releases of any substance defined as a
"highly hazardous chemicals" by the EPA or OSHA.Process Safety Management refers
to a set of inter-related approaches to manage hazards associated with the
process industries and is intended to reduce the frequency and severity of
incidents resulting from releases of chemicals and other energy sources.
These standards are composed of organizational and operational
procedures, design guidance, audit programs, and a host of other methods.
Elements of Process Safety Management The process safety management program is
divided into 14 elements. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health
Administration 1910.119 define all 14 elements of process safety management
plan. Process Safety Information
Process Hazard Analysis Operating Procedures
Training Contractors
Mechanical Integrity Hot Work
Management of Change Incident Investigation
Compliance Audits Trade Secrets
Employee Participation Pre-startup Safety Review
Emergency Planning and Response All of those elements mentioned above
are interlinked and interdependent. There is a tremendous interdependency of
the various elements of PSM. All elements are related and are necessary
to make up the entire PSM picture. Every element either contributes information
to other elements for the completion or utilizes information from other elements
in order to be completed. = Process Safety Information =
PSI or process safety information might be considered the keystone of a PSM
Program in that it tells you what you are dealing with from both the equipment
and the process standpoint. In order to be in compliance with the OSHA PSM
regulations the process safety information should include information
pertaining to the hazards of the highly hazardous chemicals used or produced by
the process, information pertaining to the technology of the process and
information pertaining to the equipment in the process.
Information pertaining to the hazards of the highly hazardous chemicals in the
process should consist of at least the following:
Toxicity information Permissible exposure limit
Physical data Reactivity data
Corrosivity data Thermal and chemical stability data
Hazardous effects of inadvertent mixing of different materials that could
foreseeably occur. Information pertaining to the technology
of the process should include at least the following:
A block flow diagram or simplified process flow diagram
Process chemistry and its properties Maximum intended inventory
Safety upper and lower limits for such items as temperatures, pressures, flows
or compositions An evaluation of the consequences of
deviations, including those effecting the safety and health of the employees.
Information pertaining to the equipment in the process should include following:
Materials of construction Piping and instrument diagram
Electrical classification Relief system design and design basis
Ventilation system design Design codes and standards employed
Material and energy balances for processes built after May 26, 1992
Safety system The employer should document that
equipment complies with recognized and generally accepted good engineering
practices For existing equipment designed and constructed in accordance
with codes, standards or practices that are no longer in general use, the
employer should determine and document that the equipment is designed,
maintained, inspected, tested and operating in a safe
Compliance A process includes any group of vessels
which are interconnected or separate and contain Highly Hazardous Chemicals which
could be involved in a potential release. A process safety incident is
the "Unexpected release of toxic, reactive, or flammable liquids and gases
in processes involving highly hazardous chemicals. Incidents continue to occur
in various industries that use highly hazardous chemicals which exhibit toxic,
reactive, flammable, or even explosive properties, or may exhibit a combination
of these properties. Regardless of the industry that uses these highly
hazardous chemicals, there is a potential for an accidental release any
time they are not properly controlled. This, in turn, creates the possibility
of disaster. To help assure safe and healthy workplaces, OSHA has issued the
Process Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals regulation which
contains requirements for the management of hazards associated with processes
using highly hazardous chemicals." Any facility that stores or uses a
defined "highly hazardous chemical" must comply with OSHA's process safety
management regulations as well as the quite similar United States
Environmental Protection Agency Risk management program regulations. The EPA
has published a model RMP plan for an ammonia refrigeration facility which
provides excellent guidance on how to comply with either OSHA's PSM
regulations or the EPA's RMP regulations.
The Center for Chemical Process Safety of the American Institute of Chemical
Engineers has published a widely used book that explains various methods for
identifying hazards in industrial facilities and quantifying their
potential severity. Appendix D of the OSHA's PSM regulations endorses the use
of the methods explained in that book. AIChE publishes additional guidelines
for process safety documentation, implementing process safety management
systems, and the Center for Chemical Process Safety publishes an engineering
design for process safety. In Australia, consideration of process
safety management is a key consideration for the management of Major Hazard
Facilities. References
External links EPA's General Risk Management Program
Guidance EPA's Risk Management Program Guidance
For Offsite Consequence Analysis Occupational Safety and Health
Administration European Agency for Safety and Health at
Work Canadian Centre for Occupational Health
and Safety Chemical Institute of Canada Process
Safety Management website National Occupational Health and Safety
Commission Health and Safety Executive
OSHA Process Safety Guidance and Information
WorkSafe Victoria – Major Hazards Process Safety Management of Highly
Hazardous Chemicals – Compliance Guidelines and Enforcement Procedures
Inside Functional Safety – Technical magazine focusing on functional safety
Note Laskar, S(2013), A Precise Process
Safety Information: The Fundamental Building Block for Strong Safety
Management Program, SPE. perNumber=SPE-163742-MS&societyCode=SPE,
ISBN 978-1-61399-237-1