Major accident prevention (MAP): a safety case approach to construction
Roberta SelleckClough.
The APPEA Journal 56(2) 549-549 https://doi.org/10.1071/AJ15055
Published: 2016
Abstract
The oil and gas construction industry continues to experience unnecessary work-related fatalities. The International Association of Oil & Gas Producers (IOGP) reported 80 fatalities in 2013 (IOGP, 2014).
When assessing this against the use of OGP Life-Saving Rules (LSRs), which contractors are required to adopt, the IOGP stated that ‘Assessment of the applicability of the OGP Life-Saving Rules to fatal incident descriptions for 2013 data has shown that at least 67% of the fatal incidents reported are covered by the OGP Life-Saving Rules and may have been prevented…’ (IOGP, 2014).
While LSRs raise awareness about the hazards and standards required, the rules-based approach has not been effective in preventing fatalities.
Clough has rigorously applied LSRs on projects, however, following a fatality in July 2013, Clough re-evaluated the management of major accident events (MAEs) and found that standard safety management practices, including the use of LSRs, were not effective in managing high-risk activities in a dynamic construction environment. As a result, the Major Accident Prevention (MAP) program was developed, bringing offshore safety case principles to the onshore construction environment. These include:
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to know and understand the activities that give rise to MAEs;
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to identify and define critical controls; and,
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to implement a verification regime that confirms the critical controls are effective.
This extended abstract describes the advantages of a safety case approach compared to the traditional LSR approach, supported by case studies to demonstrate a real-life implementation of the program on major construction projects.
Roberta Selleck is a HSSE professional with more than 20 years’ experience in senior HSSE manager roles across the resource sector, and has held roles in the oil and gas and mining industries site, and corporate based. Roberta joined Clough in August 2013 in her present role to support the design, development and implementation of Clough’s HSSE improvement strategy. Significantly, this has included developing the Clough Major Accident Prevention Program to address high-risk construction activities undertaken by Clough. Prior to joining Clough, Roberta was the HSE Manager for the FMG Solomon Operational Readiness team, which included the introduction of autonomous hauling strategy for mining at Solomon. She has a Bachelor of Science, and graduate diplomas in environmental impact assessment, education and occupational health and safety. |
