Standardised procedures for Work Permits and Safe Job Analysis on the Norwegian Continental Shelf

Abstract

Abstract Promoting safety in an offshore environment where more than 2/3 of the workforce travel between different operating companies and installations represents a continuous challenge since the procedures and requirements are different from installation to installation. The Work Permit (WP) system and the use of Safe Job Analysis (SJA) represent essential operational safety barriers required in the daily management of work and safety on oil and gas installations. Through a process of dialogue and participation, involving the offshore community a standardised procedure for WP and SJA has been developed and approved for implementation on all production installations on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS). The objective of this industry wide change is to improve safety and working conditions offshore through the use of standardised procedures and practices. Introduction More than 70 offshore oil and gas installations have been put to operation on the NCS, representing a total yearly output of approx.174 mill Sm3 (1.1 bill bbls) of oil and 65 bill Sm3 (2.3 trill scf) of gas. Eight different operating companies with their own safety management systems and procedures operate these installations. Promoting safety in an offshore environment where more than 2/3 of the workforce travel between operating companies and installations represents a continuous challenge since the procedures and requirements are different from installation to installation. An extensive collaboration initiative within health, safety and the environment in the Norwegian oil and gas industry, "Working Together for Safety" (1), was established at the turn of the year 2000/2001. The overall objective was to improve safety in human activities on board offshore vessels and installations. Establishing standardised procedures for Work Permits and Safe Job Analysis was defined as one key project. The WP system and the use of SJA represent essential operational safety barriers required in the daily management of work and safety on oil and gas installations. These are barriers based on industry practice and Norwegian regulatory requirements (2) to reduce risk and to prevent mistakes, hazards and accidents. They are required due to the wide range of activities that can take place within a limited area and the high risk if hazardous work is not properly controlled and coordinated. Other issues are the limited escape possibilities and the lack of external emergency services. For personnel travelling between different installations, such as maintenance- and drilling contractors, the various WP- and SJA systems have become a source for frustration as well as an increased safety risk. This paper covers the work to develop and obtain agreement and acceptance for standardised procedures for WP and SJA on production installations on the entire NCS. It covers the process pursued to establish a principle framework and final recommendations, the solutions that were adopted, the plan for implementation as well as some lessons learned. The process to arrive at best practice Project Group and Mandate The project group was composed of management and union representatives from six different operating companies, two contractor companies and one research institute. The project mandate was to:Establish a common model for WP and SJADevelop and provide a specific and agreed procedure that the operating companies would be committed to apply Planning for Change At the commencement of the work in March 2002, the project group realized that more than to overcome a technical challenge, a significant part of the work would be to facilitate a major change process to establish standardised and agreed procedures for WP and SJA. The outcome would impact the daily operations of several large companies influencing the working routines on some 70 installations and many thousand people in the offshore community.