Amplify Your Process Safety

In this episode, Rob is joined by Casey Houston, principal engineer of Chemitics, a consulting firm that specializes in overpressure protection and effluent handling system designs.  Casey has been a participant with the AIChE DIERS group since 2006 and has been a member with the API Subcommittee on Pressure Relief System designs since 2011.  He is also the co-chair for the API Task Force on Technical Report 522. In this episode, they discuss updating pressure relief device standards and what goes into making API standards updates.

For more information about AIChE DIERS, visitwww.aiche.org/diers. To connect with Casey, email him at[email protected]. For more on relief devices, check outEpisode 63 - Relief Devices Documentation with guest Chris Paskach andEpisode 72 - Incident Breakdown: 2018 Ethylene Release and Fire at Kuraray America, Inc. with Guest Christ Paskach.

In this episode, Rob and Magi discuss some of the natural disasters that have contributed to process safety incidents in recent years, including the impacts that Hurricanes Harvey, Laura, Ida, Ian, and Helene have had.

For related content, please check out our past episodes below.

Episode 26 - Natural Hazard Assessment and Planning

Episode 103 - Quantitative and Qualitative Natural Disaster Preparation with Guest Mike Washington

In this episode, Rob is joined by Jackson Colley, the newest member of the Amplify Process Safety team. Rob sits down with Jackson to talk about his background and what ultimately led him to joining Amplify. Welcome to the team, Jackson!

To connect with Jackson, find him on LinkedIn here or email him at [email protected].

To learn more about the rest of our team, visit www.amplifyconsultants.com/about or check out our other intro episodes below:

Episode 0 - Amplify Your Process Safety Introduction

Episode 30 - The A-Team

Episode 98 - Introducing Magi

In this special episode, Rob and Magi present 2024 (Process Safety) Wrapped. They cover regulatory changes that took place this year, major incidents the CSB has deployed to, metrics on other minor process safety incidents they've tracked this year, CSB reports issued this year, and their hopes for a renewed focus on process safety in 2025.

Do you have a process safety related resolution for 2025? Or a topic you'd like us to delve deeper into in an episode next year? Reach out to us at [email protected].

For full length episodes on topics mentioned in today's episode, please check out the links below:

In this episode, Rob welcomes back Mathew Todaro, a partner at Verrill Law who defends and negotiates on behalf of his clients under statutes such as the Clean Water Act, EPCRA, and FIFRA, with a particular focus on Section 112(r) of the Clean Air Act. Today, Rob and Mat give listeners a crash course on the EPA's Risk Management Plan (RMP) Rule. They cover applicability, the three program levels, the components and requirements of RMP, and touch on some recent RMP rule changes.

Be sure to check out Mat's previous appearances on our show at the links below:

Connect with Mat on LinkedIn ⁠here⁠.

In this episode, Rob welcomes back guest Neil Beekie, CEO and Co-Founder of OperAid. Listeners may remember him from Episode 79 (listen here) back in the summer of 2023, where he introduced us to OperAid, a software tool that assists operators with real-time verification of manual tasks. Today, Rob gets an update on present-day OperAid, including successes, the type of feedback that's been received since deployment, recent updates/improvements, how AI is and could be incorporated, and more.

In this episode, inspired by the CSB investigation update into the 2023 explosion and toxic chemical release at the Honeywell facility in Geismer, LA, Rob and Molly discuss the challenges of aging equipment and infrastructure at chemical plants and refineries. They discuss the aforementioned Honeywell incident, as well as three others where poorly maintained equipment was a key factor that ultimately led to an incident. Then they move on to discuss managing the asset life cycle, warning signs related to aging equipment, equipment deficiency management, and some considerations for aging support equipment and infrastructure.

Find the U.S. Chemical Safety Board Releases Investigation Update into 2023 Explosion and Toxic Chemical Release at Honeywell Facility in Geismer, LA here.

And finally, here are a few related podcast episodes we recommend:

In this episode, Rob and Magi discuss the CSB's new safety study titled "Remote Isolation of Process Equipment" that includes recommendations to regulators and emphasizes the need for greater adoption of remote isolation equipment at chemical facilities across the country. Rob and Magi run through the list of recent CSB investigations that are specifically highlighted in the safety study, where the CSB determined that lack of effective remote isolation equipment significantly contributed to incident consequences, discuss the recommendations the CSB made in their study to API, EPA, and OSHA, and talk about actionable next steps for listeners at applicable facilities.

Find the CSB's "Remote Isolation of Process Equipment" safety study here.

Check out our full episodes of some of the CSB investigations relating to lack of remote isolation equipment below.

The final part of our mini deep dive into different aspects of Process Hazard Analyses (PHAs) is finally here. In today's episode, Molly and Magi talk PHA safeguards, including hierarchy of controls, common types of safeguards (including how and when operator response can be credited in a PHA), quantitative vs. qualitative risk assessment for safeguard effectiveness, independent protection layer (IPL) requirements, and their best tips for safeguard considerations based on their own PHA facilitation experience.

If you haven't already, be sure to check out our other PHA-related episodes mentioned in today's show:

Thanks for listening, and please let us know what you think at ⁠[email protected]⁠.

This episode is the second of a three part series in which Molly and Magi take a deep dive into different aspects of Process Hazard Analyses (PHAs). In today's episode, they talk PHA consequences, including some common pitfalls to avoid when it comes to considering consequences in a PHA, general types of impacts used for PHA consequences, tools to use for defining impacts, and some consequence-related PHA best practices.

If you haven't already, be sure to check out our other PHA-related episodes mentioned in today's show:

And please follow our show so you can tune in to the final, third part of this mini-series when it becomes available in two weeks. Thanks for listening, and please let us know what you think at [email protected].