Hazards
Safety Critical Equipment provides a barrier to prevent or limit the effect of a major incident.
When Important
When Safety Critical Equipment is not working properly.
Challenges in the Field
- A shutdown might be needed to repair the broken equipmen
- Not aware of the criticality.
- Unawareness of the failure – no testing.
- Unreadable equipment, like a fouled sight glass.
Options to Get it Right
- Determine which equipment is safety critical.
- Ensure workers know what equipment is Safety Critical, and understand the potential hazard.
- Safety Critical Equipment must have a testing protocol and frequency.
- Report failures or deviations on safety critical systems (also from testing).
- Decide what action is appropriate, if necessary stop the operation.
- Implement interim mitigating measures that are approved, in case of continuing operation.
- Repair or replace safety critical equipment with highest priority.
- Analyse why equipment failed.
- Keeping a log on critical equipment out of service.
This page only summarises the guidance – refer to the EPSC website for further information.
For more information on our Process Safety Fundamentals (or other) playing cards please contact us.