Safety Support to High Hazard Industries

The Challenge

R2P2 and the Hadden-Cave Report (Chapter 22 on Safety Case best practice) highlight the challenges in framing a robust safety argument that justifies the necessary risk control measures. Concerns have been raised that Safety Cases can be seen as a paper ‘vault’ into which risks can be safely deposited and forgotten about. To address this, the Haddon-Cave Report outlines six guiding principles for effective safety cases. They should be:

• Succinct
• Home-grown
• Accessible
• Proportionate
• Easy to understand
• Document-lite

Our Solution

At Safeguard Engineering, we have adopted the ‘Golden Thread’ principle to guide our safety management activity.  The ‘Golden Thread’ is a conceptually clear line between the identified hazard and the associated risk management actions, safeguards and mitigations.  This clear line is fundamental to effective risk management and effective Safety Management Systems.

Following a hazard identification exercise and in accordance with most industry and defence standards, hazards are identified within the Hazard Log. This log facilitates the development of the accident scenarios for each hazard and records the safeguards and mitigations that are applied to either prevent the accident or to minimise their effects.  Hazard Logs can take many forms, and while organisations often develop their own hazard log software, a highly effective Hazard Log can also be created using a simple Excel spreadsheet. 

We’re often asked if Hazard Logs can be simplified by grouping similar hazards together.  However, this approach requires caution. For example, asphyxiation from engine exhaust fumes, asphyxiation in a confined space and asphyxiation from a fire suppressant gas might be grouped under the single hazard of ‘asphyxiation’.  In this case, a safeguard such as a ‘confined space entry procedure’ would only be relevant to the hazard of asphyxiation in a confined space. This distinction would be lost if all the hazards had all been grouped into a single ‘asphyxiation’ hazard. 

When it’s unclear which mitigations relate to which hazards, the ‘Golden Thread’ of clarity and traceability is at risk. Grouping multiple hazards within a single entry can turn the Hazard Log into a potential ‘paper vault’, which gives the impression of risk management but, in practice, becomes increasingly difficult to interrogate, making appropriate risk management actions increasingly unclear.

Client Benefits

Our clients benefit from a comprehensive safety management approach which recognises the value of maintaining the Golden Thread.  The clarity it provides has significant benefits to the safety management process:

• With a Golden Thread from the hazard description through to the mitigations, a clear set of safeguards can be developed and substantiated during the design process. As such, there can be confidence that the ‘As Low As Reasonably Practicable’ (ALARP) argument that is developed accurately reflects the reality of the implemented risk management processes.
• The effect on the risk management process of a change or modification to a mitigation can clearly be established. Consequently, the effect of the ALARP argument associated with this same hazard is clear.
• The presence of a mitigation may, at some point, be challenged for programme/cost/practicality reasons. Since a Golden Thread is presented from the relevant hazard to this mitigation, the consequences of removal of the mitigation on the related ALARP arguments are immediately clear.
• Concerns may be raised that a particular safeguard or mitigation is not sufficiently effective, leading to design change proposals that significantly increase specifications and costs. However, with clear visibility back to the hazard driving the mitigation, such redesign proposals can be thoroughly considered and balanced against the potential risk reduction in an effective Cost Benefit Analysis. This approach mitigates the risk of costly and potentially unnecessary or inappropriate redesign.

To find out more about the Golden Thread and how it can help in effectively managing your project risks, speak to one of our specialists. We have considerable experience in this field, having worked with a number of defence, governmental and commercial organisations to support their requirements in the processing and storage of energetic and flammable materials, the manufacture of energetic materials and the processing of hazardous chemicals and organic materials.