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The
President, in his introduction, noted the speaker’s
long experience of safety issues in process plants in
many parts of the world. In his opening remarks, John
paid tribute to Trevor Kletz, a pioneer in this field,
much of this contained in his book Lessons
from Disaster. The talk proceeded
to illustrate industrial disasters, of varying
seriousness, over recent decades, and lessons learnt.
The first example was of Flixborough, North Lincolnshire,
where in 1974 a cyclohexane oxidation plant was destroyed,
with the deaths of 28 people. From this resulted the
creation of the Health and Safety Executive.
The next scene noted was in northeast UK, the North Tees
area, at an oil refinery, where a footbridge was being
installed at a naphtha tank farm. Welding took place and
the operatives were unaware of a nearby leakage of
flammable naphtha. An explosive flash occurred, killing
two. At the same refinery, during the routine examination
of a hot oil pump, following initial checks, action was
taken to dissemble the pump, without prior permission.
Hot oil exploded, killing 3 staff.
Working with Celanese Canada Inc. in Alberta provided
more valuable experience. As part of natural gas supply,
a large horizontal autoclave was used to clean and
recycle acetone. The autoclave opening was at a domed end,
held in place by bolts. On one occasion the bolts were
loosened whilst the vessel was under pressure. This blew
off the bolts remaining and the domed end, with serious
consequences. The bolts were changed to a specification
that permitted safe opening. At a Celanese methanol plant
of long standing, carelessness in line connection caused
the reverse flow of caustic soda. Clamps were loosened
with hoses under pressure, causing leakage. This resulted
in all hoses being identified. Pressure Inspection
Diagrams were displayed to show pressure levels at all
points in the plant.
Resulting from a serious incident in Texas, where 16
people were killed, major safety improvements were
actioned. Resulting from Federal Edict 1010, a Management
change Form was introduced as part of Quality Assurance.
Process Safety Reviews were carried out and the Safety
Form signed off and audited. The need for clear
communication was emphasised, with one Engineer
responsible for safety procedures.
A lively question and answer session followed, with the
recent major fire at Buncefield Fuel Terminal, Herts.
fresh in the minds of the audience. This was followed by
a well-deserved vote of thanks for a most interesting and
topical talk.
C Harrison
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