Operability and HAZOPs

This week’s tip goes back to the old philosophy that knowledge is lost over time. Currently HAZOPs focus on only the hazards of the process. But think about the opportunity that you’re missing in that you have a room full of the best people from the unit and you’re not talking about operability problems. And by operability problems, I mean operational constriction points, physically difficult areas to operate, bad operating procedures, and just bad procedures.  HAZOPs are expensive to begin with, however we need to utilize all the personnel available to get the most value out of the study. It only takes a couple minutes to ask the operators these critical questions and to create action items to look into these issues. Doing this will enhance value for operations.