Integrated safety

Abstract

Safety considerations are an important part of chemical company's corporate culture. It is now widely understood that safety should be integrated in the total life cycle of chemical and biochemical products and processes.

Hazards of these products and processes are based on material properties. Therefore they can be identified by scientific methods right at the beginning of product life. The most efficient (and generally most economic!) approach is to choose safe chemicals (or microorganisms) and inherently safe reaction conditions. As far as this cannot be achieved, the risk has to be controlled by safety systems (construction, instrumentation, organization).

During the early phase of product life (laboratory, pilot plant) usually the process design changes (e.g., variations in auxilliary materials, reaction conditions). During the whole product life cycle the knowledge of hazards will improve. Therefore systems have to be implemented to monitor these changes and to assess their impact on risk management. These systems must take into account also the “human factors” during design, operation, use and disposal of products and processes.

The principles of integrated safety are successfully used since many years by the Hoechst AG. Important structures to implement this system are guidelines, organizational means and training. The responsible managers in R&D and operations as well as in sales and waste disposal get advice and assistance by safety specialists coming from various disciplines.