What are “Good Faith Efforts”? PSM/RMP Compliance Discretion and COVID-19 [Webinar]
Facilities must demonstrate “good faith efforts”, but what does that really mean with regard to PSM/RPM program elements?Read more
Facilities must demonstrate “good faith efforts”, but what does that really mean with regard to PSM/RPM program elements?Read more
For a short two days in October, representatives from various industries and government agencies descended on D.C. for an intensive summit on process safety organized primarily by the law firm Conn Maciel Carey LLP. Other sponsors included API, AFPM, and Sidley Law Firm (EPA regulatory specialists).
The 2nd Annual Process Safety Summit in Washington, D.C., boasted a heavy-hitter list of speakers and panelists from both industry and government sectors.
Provenance Consulting Account Director Dylan Misslin, along with a small team of Trinity Consultants’ PSM specialists, attended the event and enjoyed a significantly positive experience. While developed much more recently than other industry events like the AFPM National Safety Conference or the AIChE Global Congress on Process Safety, the Process Safety Summit (aka “the Summit”) taps into truly actionable information for its attendees.
Eric J. Conn and the Conn Maciel Carey Workplace Safety Practice specialize in OSHA defense, not just process safety management. Their knowledge of how the regulations directly affect their clients plus their contacts within the regulatory world enable them to provide a unique experience.
In addition to this now-annual conference, their blog, “The OSHA Defense Report” provides a treasure trove of resources for anyone wanting to gain a better understanding of the legal side of PSM regulations, citations, and letters of interpretation.
This expertise combined with a smaller attendance (fewer than 250 people) allowed for some engaging sessions with the speakers and panelists (the speaker list is available online). A few notable sessions/topics included:
Conn described the motivation for organizing the event: “The Summit fills an important gap for those impacted by process safety. Though there are opportunities for employers and operators to interact with key government regulators, none of those opportunities focus exclusively on process safety.” He explains, “All other true process safety industry events are far from Washington, DC, making it hard to attract significant representation by senior agency officials and trade group staff.”
In describing the intent of the Summit, Conn noted, “The Summit uniquely focuses on the process safety regulatory landscape and industry best practices. The event covers rulemaking, enforcement programs and matters, significant cases, trends as we move through the Trump Administration, best practices, and other key process safety regulatory issues impacting Industry.”
Overall, Dylan Misslin noted that the Summit seemed more focused on maintaining regulatory compliance by truly understanding the purpose behind the regulation and how it is enforced than just on the mechanics of a process safety management program.
“While everyone can agree that process safety is important because safety is important, the element of compliance cannot be left out of the equation for our clients.”
Mike Kish, Senior Safety Specialist at The Redstone Group, A Trinity Consultants Company, noted that the session on RAGAGEP compliance was particularly interesting.
“I found myself thinking about how RAGAGEP deficiencies landed at the top of the ChemRef NEP citations. While maintaining RAGAGEP compliance is very detailed and labor intensive, it can have serious consequences for our clients if conducted or applied improperly,” he observed.
“The key point I took away,” added Greg Haunschild, P.E., Managing Consultant at Trinity Consultants, “was the importance of defining and declaring the RAGAGEP program for your specific site and sticking with the defined program in all aspects.”
Given that PSM is a performance-based regulation, it is crucial that what you actually do match what you declare.
OSHA assumes that each site chooses their RAGAGEP standard based on the risk within the given process. Haunschild explained, “while a site may choose to set standards beyond minimum requirements, they cannot retract their original declaration in favor of a less-stringent standard if the RAGAGEP isn’t met. Once you declare the bar, you must reach it.”
Curt Petrosky, P.E, CSP, Managing Consultant at Trinity Consultants, has continued to think about the 2019 Wynnewood decision and how it could impact clients.
Given the OSHRC decision’s definition interpretation of “process”, Petrosky notes, “sites should review the boundaries of their covered processes,” to ensure they understand how the decision may impact their PSM applicability across their facilities.
Misslin noted that the benefits from attending this event were far-reaching. “Although D.C. is not the most convenient conference location, having the opportunity to connect in person with major players in the regulatory landscape was a major selling point for me,” he remarked.
The smaller scale of the event and more intimate access to a number of government representatives who are notorious for avoiding industry gatherings en masse made it worth the trip.
Petrosky agreed. “You get to hear regulators from both OSHA and EPA answer pertinent questions and give you a sense of the direction where regulation is headed,” he adds.
One word of advice for future attendees is to choose your table wisely. “Scheduled breaks were short, so most of the networking time happened briefly between sessions among your table-mates. Take the opportunity to get to know those around you whenever you get the chance – the room is full of major players either in the industry or on the regulatory side,” Misslin advised.
Looking forward to the 2020 Summit, Conn noted several major developments that will impact the process safety industries since this past October. From the EPA’s release of the RMP Reconsideration Rule to the CSB’s introduction of a proposed and final Accidental Release Reporting Rule and especially the full briefing about process boundaries in the Wynnewood case before the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, the 3rd Annual Process Safety Summit in Washington, DC, promises to be another can’t miss event.
Conn shared with us the dates for the event – October 14-15, 2020. So, save the date, and we hope to see you there.
Visit with the Provenance Consulting team at these industry events
We provide on demand process safety webinars covering all PSM topics including PHAs,
mechanical integrity, relief systems and more.
The Provenance team is not only dedicated to providing exceptional client services, we also strive to share our expertise. This past year, our team has participated in educational programming, industry conferences and presentations, and achieved some impressive professional milestones. Check out a brief list of what Provenance team members have participated in.
In my experience, many industry professionals avoid asking “dumb” technical questions openly for reasons of fear or pride. What engineers need are answers to the technical pressure relief systems questions they just can’t find a way to ask. This presentation shared questions submitted from dozens of anonymous engineers when asked, “What do you want to know about pressure relief systems but were too afraid to ask?” It then answers them using the latest RAGAGEP and industry direction.
This presentation discussed the gray area between PSM and DOT jurisdiction, including coverage of Terminal operations (e.g. drying), break-out tanks, railcars/trucks, and cavern applicability. The nuances of PSM applicability, including interconnectivity and colocation, hydrocarbon used as a fuel, atmospheric tanks, and safety systems will be presented. Furthermore, this paper will provide a history of jurisdictional boundary and PSM applicability cases/interpretations and will present examples of determining PSM jurisdiction and applicability.
“It is likely that your problem is with the process and not so much maintenance wash procedures. I recommend looking into the stream components, particularly chloride concentrations. You may have a very-well-known damage mechanism, called ammonium chloride corrosion, at work in your main fractionator tower…” [read more]
“When it comes to distillation towers, you always want to be certain that you put the right pressure relief device (PRD) in the right spot. Due to the complexities of distillation towers, many relief cases can exceed the normal relief rates you see from your typical vessel overpressure scenarios. In events such as these, it’s always good to get an experienced evaluator or a second opinion of the evaluation of your column PRDs…” [read more]
To become licensed, engineers must complete a four-year college degree, work under a Professional Engineer for at least four years, pass two intensive competency exams and earn a license from their state’s licensure board. Then, to retain their licenses, PEs must continually maintain and improve their skills throughout their careers.
In addition, in 2019 Edward Guillen completed his API 653 Inspector certification, making him a rare triple-certified inspector (API 510, 570, 653).
We provide on demand process safety webinars covering all PSM topics including PHAs,
mechanical integrity, relief systems and more.
Provenance Account Director (Nuclear Engineer)
About Dylan
Job Title: Account Director
Hometown: Pflugerville, TX
Degree (College/University): Bachelor of Science in Nuclear Engineering (Texas A&M University)
Years with Provenance: 5 years
Years in the Industry: 5 years
Work Site: Freeport, TX
The Story
Second time was the charm for Dylan Misslin. After leaving college to pursue an opportunity in car sales, Dylan found himself faced with a choice about his future. He’d been out of school for ten years – could he really go back?
On a test drive, a gentleman encouraged him, “Dylan, you wouldn’t believe how easy it is to go back and finish your degree.” While this lit the fuse for his return to engineering, Dylan will admit it was not “easy”.
“I worked at least 45 hours a week and had two kids in the process of trying to get my nuclear engineering degree,” he explains. “I basically worked, studied, or went to school 7 am – midnight, six days a week for three years and spent all of Sunday with my family.”
That determination to finish what he started is part of what makes Dylan such an excellent leader. He’s also extremely adaptable, which is how he ended up in the oil and gas industry instead of nuclear.
“The Fukushima, Japan, nuclear incident happened right after I was accepted back in school which put a damper on the demand for nuclear engineers. That’s how I ended up in the oil and gas industry and with Provenance. I’d say it’s worked out pretty well for me,” he reflects.
While plans changed, his resolve to obtain his degree never wavered. “I better appreciated what I was learning the second time around, and when I put my passion into it, it was doable,” he says.
Today, Dylan is one of the Provenance Account Directors. He is responsible for developing scopes of work, planning, staffing, execution, quality control and managing team members that work on a variety of PSM related projects for our clients. He’s also accountable for maintaining a positive relationship with the client, continuing to win work, and ensure projects won are profitable.
Managing Partner Patrick Nonhof adds,
“Dylan’s career has focused on client management and account growth. Dylan has been very successful in translating the problem-solving skills required for ‘traditional’ engineering into solving business problems.”
Recently, Dylan has focused on better understanding the nuances of how to develop and maintain programs that comply with regulation. He recently delivered a well-received webinar on Process Safety Management Compliance Audits focused how to build and guide your audit team to achieve success.
His humor and personality shine during the presentation as images of and references to movies and TV shows (especially “The A-Team”) pop up throughout, a true representation of his personality.
Professionally, his confidence and “comfort in his own skin” enable him to control the room as well as encourage others to feel comfortable and participate.
While it may have taken him a little longer than others, Dylan’s career in engineering has shown to be mutually beneficial for him and Provenance. His story proves that it is never too late to pursue your calling – and engineering is not just for the traditional student.
As far as landing outside of the nuclear industry, Dylan says, “Initially, I wanted to be a part of delivering clean nuclear energy to the world. Now I keep traditional energy safe.”
Engineers Week 2019
Are you interested in leveraging your PSM compliance audit data into a valuable investment? Could you use tools to help you prepare for a successful compliance audit? Take this webinar to learn more.Read more
Engineering Process Safety Solutions.
