PISTA BLOG#07:MAINTAINING A STRONG SAFETY CULTURE IN THE O&G INDUSTRY.

 MAINTAINING A STRONG SAFETY CULTURE 

IN THE OFFSHORE OIL & GAS INDUSTRY

                    The oil and gas extraction and production industry are considered a challenging workplace and workers are exposed to a higher risk of injuries and fatalities compared to all the other industries in the world.

• REMOTE WORK AREAS,
• HARSH WEATHER CONDITIONS AND 
• CLOSE PROXIMITY OF LIVING AREA TO THE HAZARDOUS ACTIVITIES 

The above conditions pose a daunting task for safety professionals and workers to keep up a strong safety Culture consisting of not only safety equipment & PPEs but also includes

• ATTITUDES, 
• BELIEFS, 
• VALUES & PRINCIPLES that encourage safe behavior in the workplace.

Many aspects need to be kept in mind to create and maintain a safe working culture in this industry. All the variable parts need to come together for this system to work.

HERE ARE 7 IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS TO BE KEPT IN MIND IN ESTABLISHING A SAFETY STRATEGY & THE DESIRED SAFETY CULTURE

1. MANAGEMENT INVOLVEMENT
2. EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT
3. EFFICIENT WORKPLACE HAZARD ANALYSIS
4. PROPER CONTROL & ABATEMENT 
5. EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS
6. ROBUST TRAINING  
7. CONSTANT EVALUATION 

Let us have a brief look at each of these elements:    

1)MANAGEMENT INVOLVEMENT

This includes practicing safe behaviors and demonstrating involvement and can be demonstrated by carrying out:

• TEAM INTERACTIONS & TEAM-BUILDING EXERCISES,
• EMPOWERING WORKERS TO CREATE SAFETY PROCEDURES & POLICIES,
• ALLOCATING PERSONNEL & FINANCIAL RESOURCES TO IMPROVE THE SAFETY OF EMPLOYEES.

2)EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT

There is no safety culture without the participation of employees. Employees become owners of the safety culture when they participate in the occupational safety and health initiatives of their organization. Safety and health initiatives are pivotal in establishing a culture. The objectives of these Employee centric initiatives should be to: 

• TO RAISE THE EMPLOYEE'S AWARENESS OF EXISTING HAZARDS, 
• PROMOTE EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT, 
• MAKE THE WORK PROCESSES MORE EFFICIENT AND 
• REDUCE THE NUMBER OF INCIDENTS IN THE WORKPLACE.

  

 3)EFFICIENT WORKPLACE HAZARD ANALYSIS

Identification of current and future threats such as

• FALL, TRIP, MOTION & GRAVITY-RELATED HAZARDS,
• FIRE HAZARDS, COMBUSTIBLE DUST & GASES & FLAMMABLE MATERIALS,
• ELECTRICAL HAZARD, 
• NOISE HAZARD,
• CHEMICAL HAZARDS AND
• HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARDS OF EVERY COMPONENT

If health and safety hazards are not identified and analyzed, there is no way to protect employees or create a secure workplace. This analysis should break down every process into specific components and a safety-critical analysis should be carried out.

 4)PROPER HAZARD CONTROL & ABATEMENT 

After the workplace hazard analysis the Management attempts:

• ELIMINATION OF HAZARDS,
• SUBSTITUTION OF THE HAZARD, ( in which one hazardous material or process is replaced with another safer material or procedure)
• BRINGING-IN THE ENGINEERING CONTROLS, (such as enclosing or isolating a hazardous process or changing the initial design of a machine.)
• INTRODUCE WORK PRACTICE CONTROLS,
• INTRODUCE HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES (like job rotation, creating good personal hygiene, proper housekeeping, or machine maintenance.)
• ISSUANCE OF APT PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (such as safety glasses, respirators, gloves. etc)

 5)EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS 

Information about the existing and anticipated hazards should be common knowledge and the organization’s policies and procedures, regulations, and safety objectives should be communicated freely. This includes the use of :

• ORIENTATION MANUALS, 
• TASK AND PROCEDURE INSTRUCTIONS,
• GENERAL SAFETY COURSES, 
• EQUIPMENT MANUALS, SIGNAGE, AND SAFETY MEETINGS.

Communication is vital as it creates safety awareness while reinforcing safe behaviors and demonstrates management’s commitment to the well-being of its employees.

6)ROBUST TRAINING 

Employers must provide employees with the appropriate training before the assignment of the job. This specific training will enable workers to recognize hazards and teach them the ways to eliminate or abate these threats. Safety training methods can include:

• FACE TO FACE LECTURE METHOD IN A CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT,
• E-LEARNING / VIDEO GUIDANCE,
• HANDS-ON TRAINING,
• SAFETY MEETINGS OR USE OF EQUIPMENT SIMULATORS.

Training an employee who is working in an unsafe manner and training when being introduced to a new task is deemed mandatory. 

 7)EVALUATION OF PERFORMANCE, ALONG WITH A REWARD SYSTEM

Identification of minimum requirements for a safe and healthy workplace is the starting point and subsequently, an organization must measure its performance -- usually every year -- at the beginning of a period and the end of the period. This helps to measure the actual performance of the organization against the minimum required targets. The objective of this step is

• TO IDENTIFY WEAKNESSES WITHIN AN ORGANIZATION
• EVALUATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PREVIOUSLY IMPLEMENTED POLICIES AND PROCEDURES. 

This should be complemented with a REWARD SYSTEM that provides employees feedback regarding their performance. The reward system should recognize those who practice and promote safe behavior.

CONCLUSION: To conclude, safety culture is something that constantly evolves. We should remember that a safety culture will be influenced and altered by:

• THE BELIEFS OF MANAGEMENT, 
• IMPLEMENTATION OF NEW SAFETY REGULATIONS, 
• INTRODUCTION OF INNOVATIVE MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT AND 
• MEDICAL FINDINGS THAT IDENTIFY PREVIOUSLY UNKNOWN HAZARDS. 

However, following the above-mentioned 7 CONSIDERATIONS in maintaining a safety culture can keep a workplace free of hazards, and create a safe and secure work environment for all employers and employees engaged in the Offshore Oil and Gas Industry.

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Note from the Author@PISTA :

It is PISTA's priority to inculcate safety awareness and imbibe a safety culture into each and every person who enrolls in the Safety Courses offered here at the PISTA Training Center. 

The topics mentioned above and also those shared in every PISTA BLOG reflect this priority. 

We at PISTA request the readers of our blogs to share and spread awareness amongst everyone who is interested in and related to the Offshore Oil&Gas Industry.