Dynamic Risk Assessment – A MacGyverism to Worksite Incidents

Abstract

The industry is in constant research with consistent efforts to ensure that the no/less incidents occur during the course of operations. Notable and popular slogans/rules have been adopted among engineering and oil & gas organizations over the years in the industry to intimate the need for safe activities to be performed among staff. Slogans like Goal Zero, Golden Rule dictum, "Safe…Yes we can", Life Saving Rules, "No Wahala…Take 5" and many others have been used in recent times to inculcate the culture of safety and situational awareness in the mind of the work force. Tools like check cards, stickers, safety IDs and banners are also quick reminders of the environment being operated on. However while all these tools are fairly efficient, the need for proper risk assessment cannot be over-emphasized at all times before a job to be done can be certified safe. Worksite Tools like toolbox talk, last minute risk assessment (LMRA), Job Hazard Analysis (JHA) and post job debrief are veritable towards achieving this goal. But while risk assessment before the job commences is important, of equivalent or even much importance is the one conducted during the job and this is called dynamic risk assessment. This paper presents an approach and exposition of the risk assessment plan in the operations level in the oil and gas industry. It also discussed on the methods to be deployed a successful risk assessment and buttress further on static and dynamic risk assessment as it concerns operations in a gas process plant. A new conceptual risk assessment model has been developed. A case study was treated from Atabala Plant which is a gas processing facility in the south southern Nigeria.