Lessons Learned From a Corrosion Under Insulation near Miss

Mechanical Integrity programs have been an essential element of process safety programs in the chemical and petroleum industries for decades. This is an area where considerable materials have been published regarding industry best practices for inspection and maintenance ? including excellent advice on inspection for ?corrosion under insulation?. However, The Dow Chemical Company experienced a significant near miss event at one facility recently caused by lapses in understanding by local personnel of corrosion under insulation, as well as inadequate leveraging of learnings from plants of similar design. This paper explains the circumstances behind this event and the key lessons Dow learned to help other companies avoid similar occurrences.