Excellence in safety is the key to address the increasing complexity of industrial production processes and the increase of rules and regulations both in Europe and internationally.
Experts in the field of plant operation give an overview of new methodologies and techniques to improve process safety in the chemical industry and related sectors. The 33rd European joint AIChE / Delta Process Academy Seminar is an effective platform for interacting and sharing insights with industry leaders and professionals.

Catalytic processes and process safety requirements, Geert Vercruysse, BASF

On June 3, 2014, two major explosions and subsequently a fire occurred at a SM/PO plant in the Netherlands. The investigation report showed that the root cause of the incident was an unexpected reaction of the catalyst with ethylbenzene. This reaction happened during the commissioning phase of the in-situ activation of the catalyst.
This explosion may have been a trigger to review the commissioning and start up procedures to see if a similar incident could happen. The results of a review (inclusive other catalyst related incidents) will be shown and used as a basis for discussion. 

Presentation file here

 

Smart tag technology, Mathieu Westerweele, Operating Training Solutions

Ideally, in terms of safety and good operation, every valve in a plant or tank terminal should have a position indication that is available in the Control Room. It is, however, common practice that only very few hand valves have an actual position notifier. Mathieu presents a new “Smart Tag Technology” (originally intended for Operator Training) that turned out to be a highly effective and low cost(!) solution to minimize operational risks, by having an overview of the actual valve positions of all (important) hand valves.

Presentation file here

 

 

Operational Technology (OT) security, a technical or an organizational challenge? Marcel Kelder, Yokogawa Europe B.V. 

Cyber security has become a significant factor in the overall risk management for industrial installations, process plants and other critical assets. With the advent of new technologies such as IIoT Industry 4.0 in the plant automation domain, and the increased interconnectedness of plants, networks and equipment, cyber security vulnerabilities pose real risk for safety and business continuity. Although there is awareness, companies are struggling with implementing a proper cyber security program for the Operational Technology (OT) domain. Is OT security more a technical or an organizational challenge. This is the central question of the presentation plus how to overcome certain barriers.

 

Presentation file here

 

Risk management - Practical approach towards safety management, Kristin Boogaerts, Jacobs 

Risk management is a key factor in Designing for Safe Operation. Driven by the Seveso Directive and the associated emphasis on prevention of loss of containment, the implementation of an all capping Safety Management system is essential. Both in new design and in assessment of Safety Management in existing installations; a robust analysis and structured project type approach can help to identify and mitigate the risks.
Key success factors in this process is the collaboration of all stakeholders and the continuous maintenance of the systems with special emphasis on Management of Change. We will provide case studies executed by JACOBS where we implemented our tailor-made approach towards Safety Management.

Presentation file here