Inspectioneering
Inspectioneering Journal

Achieving Excellence in PRD Integrity Management

By Grady Hatton, Operations Manager at Versa Integrity Group, and Melissa Guerra, Fixed Equipment Inspector at Chevron Products Company. This article appears in the July/August 2016 issue of Inspectioneering Journal.
27 Likes

Introduction

Most inspection programs do an adequate job of managing Pressure Relieving Devices (PRDs), without giving much consideration to the potential consequences of PRD failure to open or leak.  Many plants inspect PRDs on preset intervals as recommended by inspection code API 510, and implement inspection practices such as API RP 576.  But with the introduction of PRD risk-based inspection (RBI), these delicate instruments (yes, PRD’s are delicate & they are instruments) should be receiving much more dedicated attention.  Are we really giving those PRD’s the appropriate amount of care they need?

Just seeking PRD compliance with codes and standards usually results in mediocre mechanical integrity and process safety.  Companies must go further to climb the ladder to “excellence.”

  1. Don’t wait until a fire or explosion or injury to implement an effective PRD program.
  2. PRD “Excellence” does not mean “overdone or excessive.”
  3. PRD excellence consists of QA/QC, procedures, training, discipline, effective implementation, and constant re-evaluation.
  4. PRD excellence means your pressure-relieving system is adequate for the protected equipment.
  5. PRD excellence means you have an excellent relationship, communications, and QA process in place with testing and refurbishment shops, that conforms to your company standards.

Assessing Your PRD System

Rarely does our industry experience a failure, explosion or fire because of something that was caused by some new unknown phenomena.  Failure incidents are obvious once you see them.  We have a tendency to assume what we think, or what we want to believe, rather than what is actually there.  We have the tendency to see what our minds want us to see rather than what’s really there. It's the same problem all of us run up against when we try to proof-read our own text.  We see what we know the text means, rather than what is actually printed on the page.  We become so familiar with what we are looking at, that we no longer see the problem.

People can look at PRD opportunities again and again without being able to see what can be improved.  The real reason that Third Party Reviews (TPR's) and Cold Eyes Reviews (CER's) can detect issues that have been missed by on-site staff for years is that they don't know the routine.  TPR’s provide a fresh set of eyes that have not been influenced by that attitude of, “we have always done it that way”.

This content is available to registered users and subscribers

Register today to unlock this article for free.

Create your free account and get access to:

  • Unlock one premium article of your choosing per month
  • Exclusive online content, videos, and downloads
  • Insightful and actionable webinars
GET STARTED
Interested in unlimited access? VIEW OUR SUBSCRIPTION OPTIONS

Current subscribers and registered users can log in now.


Comments and Discussion

There are no comments yet.

Add a Comment

Please log in or register to participate in comments and discussions.


Inspectioneering Journal

Explore over 20 years of articles written by our team of subject matter experts.

Company Directory

Find relevant products, services, and technologies.

Training Solutions

Improve your skills in key mechanical integrity subjects.

Case Studies

Learn from the experience of others in the industry.

Integripedia

Inspectioneering's index of mechanical integrity topics – built by you.

Industry News

Stay up-to-date with the latest inspection and asset integrity management news.

Blog

Read short articles and insights authored by industry experts.

Expert Interviews

Inspectioneering's archive of interviews with industry subject matter experts.

Event Calendar

Find upcoming conferences, training sessions, online events, and more.

Downloads

Downloadable eBooks, Asset Intelligence Reports, checklists, white papers, and more.

Videos & Webinars

Watch educational and informative videos directly related to your profession.

Acronyms

Commonly used asset integrity management and inspection acronyms.