aborrowman@pdqinternational.com

Gap Analysis
Case Studies

We were asked to review the status of the front end engineering design (FEED) of a UK oil installation carried out by a Norwegian contractor. The review included a gap analysis of documentation, activities and processes; comparing what had been delivered against the expected status for a UKCS-compliant project at the end of FEED. The degree of non-compliance was significant as the design contractor had adopted a prescriptive rather than the UK goal-setting approach, had not taken account of project-specific hazards and had no framework to search for, evaluate and assess risk reduction measures to achieve ALARP.

The licensor of a plastics manufacturing process based the design of a new plant on that of a previous plant without taking account of some modifications and ignored an important client standard for pressure relief. We were asked to evaluate the significance of these defects and the impact on operational safety. It was found that the licensor had carried out a sub-standard HAZOP study of the design, assuming that hazards were the same as in the previous plant, and did not have competent engineers to design a compliant pressure relief system. Design features to prevent a fire or explosion were vulnerable to loss of power in the plant.