AI-Assisted Incident Analysis: Mapping Incident Reports to CCPS Process Safety Elements

In an era of accelerating digital transformation, integrating Safe Artificial Intelligence (AI) with structured process safety frameworks presents a powerful opportunity to strengthen risk management and enhance organizational learning. This paper presents a practical, AI-driven safety system that analyzes incident investigation reports, such as those from the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) or other relevant sources, by systematically mapping them to the 20 Elements of Risk-Based Process Safety (RBPS) as defined by the AIChE Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS).

At its core is a custom-built, Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT)-powered conversational assistant designed to serve as an intelligent user interface for industry professionals. Leveraging natural language processing and structured data extraction, the system automates the review of investigation reports, extracting dates, durations, root causes, and contributing factors, each mapped to relevant CCPS elements with traceable references and linked best practices. The assistant supports safety analysis activities such as Hazard and Operability Study (HAZOP) deviation identification, Layers of Protection Analysis (LOPA) consequence summaries, and hazard classification by type, industry, or event. It also auto-generates Excel datasets, Word Document summaries and presentation-ready PowerPoint decks to support safety briefings, training, and internal risk reviews. The assistant features a voice-enabled interface that allows users to ask queries verbally and receive synthesized audio responses. A multilingual conversational capability enables interaction in multiple languages, supporting adoption across international teams and operating environments.

This work demonstrates a scalable, transparent application of AI that transforms static investigation reports into actionable insights, empowering frontline users, reducing exposure, and advancing the practical use of digital tools in process safety.