Hazards and risk reduction

This chapter provides an overview of various sources of hazards and risks in a manufacturing plant and presents some methods available for identifying and quantifying them in any particular situation. A basic understanding of hazards and the potential for hazardous events is essential for persons involved in hazard studies. The chapter discusses the chemical-plant hazards and describes how they are related to the hazard study methods, to show how a combination of conditions must be tested to reveal conditions that could cause an accident. Systematic hazard-study methods help in understanding the nature of hazards and their contributing factors. The studies begin at the earliest possible stage of a project when the concept or outline of the process is set down, and the studies are repeated in increasing detail as the design and building of the plant evolves. By this method, potential hazards are identified at the earliest possible stage in a design when corrective actions are easiest to carry out. Further levels of study—performed as the design detail improves—serve to verify the safety measures taken so far and identify potential problems emerging in the details. The IEC model has captured the essence of the existing well-tried practices and has arrived at a version that is intelligible and acceptable to a wide variety of industries and companies. The choice of technique depends on various factors such as nature of the hazard, industry sector practices, legal requirements, and consequences and likelihood.