When starting any project, you need to make sure you are taking their right preliminary steps to ensure the workers’ safety throughout construction and that the result adheres to regulations and codes while staying within the scope of the original designs.
The best way to ensure your plans are carried out correctly and everyone stays protected and safe throughout the process is by conducting a PHSR.
Why Conduct A PHSR?
A PHSR or pre-startup health and safety review will act as the final preliminary step you take to ensure that your project is executed correctly. A pre-startup safety review will ensure everything is designed correctly, process and equipment information is available and complete, and all the equipment has been installed according to manufacturer specifications.
Things can often get out of control throughout lengthy projects if the right steps are not taken to keep things on track. Often, these projects are delayed or prolonged, and sometimes cutting corners becomes an attractive option. However, this can lead to accidents and dangerous situations. Conducting a pre-startup safety review is going to be necessary to keep you on track.
The 5 Steps
For a proper PSSR to be conducted, the following five steps must be taken:
- Designate a leader for your PHSR team. This team member should have enough authority to delay startup if they discover issues with the plans. They should be able to resist any push-back they are bound to receive.
- The above leader should develop a personnel team to complete a follow up on the PSSR. This team should include designers, engineers, maintenance, operations, supervisors, and safety consultants.
- The above personnel team should use checklists to verify the different aspects of the PSSR are followed.
- This personnel team also must understand all the equipment that will be in use including, connecting pipes, mixers, reactors, vessels, tanks, etc.
- Hire third-party consultants to assist this personnel team in understanding the exact specifications and intricacies of each machine.
By following the above steps, you can ensure that your project is up to code. Projects that begin without a thorough PHSR will most likely run into severe issues that could lead to dangers and instabilities.
By working with experts in pre-start up safety review, you can ensure that your project has a firm backbone to guide you along the way.