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Risk Engineering Position Paper: Process Safety Performance Indicators (PSPIs)

The development of an effective PSPI system can provide a clear view on how well process safety is being managed at a site and across the wider organisation.
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The process industry has a long history of major incidents that are well-publicised, with many valuable lessons to be learned. It has been recognised that the focus on personal safety is one side of preventing accidents. However, a major incident can cause as much harm to people in an instant as all the injuries that have been avoided in a decade of personal safety programmes. The underlying causes of major incidents are often related to failures in what is commonly known as “process safety management”.

The development of an effective PSPI system can provide a clear view on how well process safety is being managed at a site and across the wider organisation. Common PSPI systems can allow comparisons to be made and lead to more focused knowledge sharing – from proactive information as well as reactive.

This latest position paper defines the standards rated by Marsh as “very good” for a set of process safety performance indicators in the oil, gas, and petrochemical industry. These standards are incorporated in the Marsh Energy Risk Ranking criteria. They can be used to support and define risk improvement recommendations and also to provide detailed advice to clients seeking to better understand and improve their process safety performance.