by Brianna Crandall — August 25, 2014—Retiring equipment in the chemical processing industry may pose more danger than meets the eye as residual hazardous chemicals, live electrical connections, or connections to in-service process machinery complicates how to safely remove these items from a plant, according to the July issue of the American Society of Safety Engineers’ (ASSE) monthly journal, Professional Safety.
“In the worst cases, the equipment has essentially been abandoned,” writes author Robert Wasileski. “Hazards associated with these situations can present imminent risks, or facilitate the gradual development of unforeseen risks over time.”
That is especially true for flammable and combustible material that is left to reside inside abandoned equipment, according to the article. When these materials are accidentally released from containment, vapor cloud explosions, flash fires and pool fires become imminent threats, Wasileski writes. Companies are encouraged to form a robust out-of-service equipment (OOSE) program that addresses risk management strategies for both existing and future situations in the following categories:
- Field identification — tag equipment and catalog information in a database
- Cataloging and categorization — the electronic database allows the OOSE inventory to be cataloged, along with relevant data pertaining to the equipment’s status and condition
- Hazard identification and risk evaluation — using screening instruments developed at the start of the OOSE project permits staff to collect key inputs that are later needed to make decisions regarding risk
- Inspection, testing and preventive maintenance — it remains necessary to conduct planned, periodic inspections of decommissioned and mothballed equipment that has not been dismantled
The article, titled “Retired & Dangerous, Out-of-Service Equipment Hazards,” is available on the ASSE Web site.
