Process Safety with Trish & Traci

Having thorough and up-to-date process safety documentation will enable plant personnel and first responders to act quickly. Knowledge is power -- be sure that if something goes wrong you know what to do about it. This episode of Process Safety with Trish & Traci offers sage advice. 

Dive into the fascinating world of inherently safer design, exploring its core principles and historical lessons from past incidents. Discover how balancing safety and simplification can mitigate risks, while also addressing the pitfalls of excessive safety measures that can compromise project viability. Learn the importance of continuous maintenance in sustaining safety and hear a fun fact about Trevor Kletz that ties it all together. This engaging discussion shines a light on practical strategies for enhancing safety in chemical processing.

This episode of Process Safety with Trish & Traci discusses the topic of punishment for acts that directly relate to safety incidents. While true accidents happen, there are cases where corporate wrongdoing is the reason for injury or loss of life. 

Today's topic is a news story from earlier this year regarding the fire and explosions and ultimate shuttering of the Philadelphia Energy Solutions oil refinery. The official word from the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board is that a corroded pipe fitting, found to be half the thickness of a credit card at its thinnest point, led to that incident. The concern is that the pipe, which was installed when Richard Nixon was president -- 1973 -- went all this time without being properly checked.

It's not a question of if you will get hacked -- it's a question of when. Traci Purdum, senior digital editor of Chemical Processing, and Trish Kerin, director of IChemE Safety Centre, discuss cyber vulnerabilities and how to stay ahead of the bad actors wanting to stymie your operations. 

The aftermath of a hurricane or extreme weather goes well beyond the event itself. Many issues arise that can cause problems months or even years later. How do you prepare for the current weather and mitigate against accidents in the future?

Trish Kerin, director of IChemE Safety Center, and Traci Purdum, senior editor at Chemical Processing, discuss process safety regulations. In the end, a safe workspace is a productive workspace and regulations aren't meant to keep you down -- they are meant to keep you safe. The key is making sure regulators are educated enough to help you reach your safety goals.

In this episode of Process Safety with Trish and Traci we examine recent catastrophic events at chemical plants in China. Trish Kerin, director of the IChemE Safety Center offers compelling insight into what might be causing so many accidents abroad.