Online Only: Improving safety, efficiency in front-line operations

Operators and service companies face growing pressure to achieve increased front-line work efficiency while improving safety and environmental performance. With new and changing regulations, billions of dollars are invested in maintenance, planning, and production technology, but in many cases, these fail to deliver on the promise of safe, efficient, and sustainable operations.

This has led to a number of specific challenges, including degrading plant integrity, poor maintenance plan attainment, missed production opportunities, major incidents, and the impact that front-line operations will have on these. What is disconcerting is that in an environment of need surrounded by regulation, front-line operations have changed very little in the past 40 years, with many systems still relying on manual forms in triplicate. As a result, the efficiency of workers on the front line typically is below 50%.

Combined with the pressure on operators to improve overall efficiency following the downturn and the different trading conditions that have been created as a result, the only feasible option is to systemize and standardize current practices.

Sample section of cold work permit (in progress of being completed).(Images courtesy of Petrotechnics Ltd.)

A new standard
Petrotechnics is one organization that believes safety and efficiency benefits can be delivered through the simplification, standardization, and systemization of safe work control – for example, permits, lock out/tag out (LOTO), risk assessment, and the associated processes. Petrotechnics’ Sentinel PRO system provides complete easy-to-use software tools while simultaneously addressing process integration and front-line practice – important elements for both safety and performance improvement.

By combining effective safe work control practices with operations, tangible benefits can be realized immediately with a reduction in man hours, a structured approach, and increased operational protection. This leads to an ultimate reduction in cost while allowing operators to realize their potential both onshore and offshore. Petrotechnics’ installed user base for Sentinel PRO has more than 40,000 users in 19 countries and has overcome the challenges of change management from disparate paper to fully integrated software enablement. That said, it is always important to recognize the blend of process integration, human behavior, native working practices, and operational scale and complexity is key to technology success, not simply status-quo digitization.

The system recognizes and overcomes challenges in the unstructured and dynamic nature of managing operations, maintenance, and associated activity through a unified business process that integrates permit to work, risk assessment, and isolation management. This is delivered to the user in an intuitive, graphical, real-time software tool that has the ability to capture lessons learned, encouraging users to share knowledge and experience across the organization. In doing so, a safer place of work is created.

In addition, it becomes impossible to “bend the rules” as the system leads users through clear and structured work flows and necessary electronic approvals, ensuring only authorized individuals can move permits through the correct life cycle, while the system rigor ensures best practice process is followed at all times.

Increased efficiency is matched with accelerated maintenance and remedial work, resulting in better plan attainment and a corresponding improvement in plant integrity. Sentinel PRO fundamentally shifts the approach to the planning and integration of all aspects of front-line work to give a clear overview, appropriate safe work control, and assurance of intervention activities. Risk assessment lies at the core, whether it is individual or team-based. For example, shutdowns can be planned several months in advance, with the flexibility to manage the process either from the installation or from the beach.

A sample section of a hot work permit is shown.

The increase in efficiency the technology provides is complimented by the level of control attained throughout the risk assessment process as its transparent nature means that all users can view risk assessment, permit to work, isolations, audit trails, and lessons learned, within a fully integrated and regulated system.

How work gets done
The proficiency of Sentinel PRO was demonstrated in a recent project with Shell Onshore Gas – Americas. A total of 10 operating sites were identified across the US and Canada.

Shell required Petrotechnics to address a number of issues, including improving work efficiency through less rework, greater reuse, and less duplication and improving safety performance with increased permit quality, audit capabilities, and the ability to capture learning with interlocking safe work permitting and LOTO. In addition, Shell required a single integrated business process approach across all sites with work categorization and associated specific task practices to increase process assurance and compliance.

As an initial stage, Petrotechnics reviewed the current work processes to identify the scope and impact areas where Sentinel PRO could add value. This highlighted a large number of conventional paper processes as well as a move, in some cases, to simple electronic systems such as LOTO. The processes all were largely disparate, so identifying where a single process integrating all aspects of work would drastically increase efficiency provided substantial cost savings was established through a process of consultation with the sites and central teams.

Sample section of cold work permit breaking containment.

Along with the implementation of the Sentinel PRO system, Petrotechnics also had to manage the internal change process, which required all 700 users to be licensed and trained. The initial rollout process took less than a year.

The tangible implementation benefits included better workplace management and control, improved time efficiency, streamlined processes, and assurance that work risk is assessed to the appropriate level. Process efficiency was achieved through more effective communication, improved maintenance planning, and greater schedule compliance. Plant availability was improved by tasking supervisors and technicians more appropriately, and complete standardization of business processes was delivered, resulting in improved safety performance and activity planning combined with harmonization across all 10 sites.

A recent turnaround, for example, was completed over 21 days (40,000 man hours) with zero incidents. More broadly, the introduction of Sentinel PRO has reduced the indirect cost of performing project and maintenance activity by approximately 20%.

With six of the top 10 international oil and gas companies using Sentinel PRO, it is clear operators can use technology and transform the safety and efficiency of how work gets done at the front line. The drive to reduce cost and increase production in a safe and sustainable way is a constant pressure. Petrotechnics’ solution has been proven in safe work control and provides the foundation for further integration with other enterprise systems such as maintenance, planning, and incident investigation.