It is different from general occupational safety, although the two disciplines interact.

Occupational versus process safety

Occupational safety may focus on:

  • falls;
  • lifting;
  • machinery;
  • ergonomic exposure;
  • routine work hazards.

Process safety focuses more on:

  • loss of containment;
  • fire;
  • explosion;
  • toxic release;
  • runaway reaction;
  • major equipment/process failure.

Process hazards

Useful foundations include:

  • flammability;
  • toxicity;
  • reactivity;
  • pressure;
  • temperature;
  • inventories;
  • process deviations.

Chemical/process engineering knowledge is often important.

PHA and HAZOP

Process Hazard Analysis systematically identifies hazardous scenarios.

HAZOP typically examines deviations from design intent using a multidisciplinary team.

A developing engineer should learn:

  • nodes;
  • deviations;
  • causes;
  • consequences;
  • safeguards;
  • recommendations.

Formal studies require competent facilitation and process knowledge.

LOPA context

CCPS describes LOPA as a semi-quantitative method used to evaluate whether independent protection layers are sufficient for a defined cause-consequence scenario.

It is not a replacement for HAZOP or detailed quantitative risk analysis.

Management of change

Process changes can introduce new hazards.

MOC should consider:

  • technical basis;
  • hazards;
  • procedures;
  • training;
  • documentation;
  • startup readiness.

Mechanical integrity interface

Process safety depends on equipment remaining capable of containment.

Interfaces can include:

  • inspection;
  • maintenance;
  • pressure equipment;
  • relief systems;
  • corrosion;
  • critical safeguards.

Relief and containment concepts

A process-safety engineer should understand why systems need:

  • pressure relief;
  • containment;
  • detection;
  • shutdown;
  • separation.

Detailed design requires relevant engineering specialization.

Incident learning

Major incidents often reveal combinations of:

  • design weakness;
  • degraded safeguards;
  • poor change control;
  • maintenance;
  • procedures;
  • organizational decisions.

Process-safety metrics

Useful indicators can include:

  • loss-of-containment events;
  • safeguard impairment;
  • overdue critical actions;
  • PHA/MOC backlog;
  • mechanical-integrity exceptions.

Metric definitions should align with the organization's framework.

Career path

Common routes:

  • chemical/process engineering;
  • operations engineering;
  • HSE with strong process depth;
  • mechanical integrity;
  • technical safety.

Process safety is an engineering discipline. A general safety certificate alone does not establish competence in major-hazard analysis.

Related content

Sources