(32bm) Proactive Strategies for Preventing Process Safety Incidents in the 2020s

This paper challenges some of the conventional approaches to preventing process safety incidents, arguing that existing methods have proven inadequate in mitigating incidents. Despite the application of well-established hazard identification and risk assessment techniques, major process safety incidents persist worldwide. Several significant incidents occurred in the first four years of this decade, with CCPS reporting seventeen significant process safety incidents in 2020 alone. All these incidents were preventable if hazards had been effectively identified, and adequate control barriers were in place. The fact that incidents continue to occur, despite well-known preventive measures, underscores the need for a paradigm shift. This paper advocates for a proactive strategy that centers on cognitive trending of process safety near misses, dynamic monitoring of leading indicators, learning from other companies' incidents, and finally building fail-safe capacity within systems. The proposed approach aims to shift the paradigm from reactive learning to proactive prevention, ultimately minimizing the occurrence and impact of process safety incidents.