Overview

The Singapore Ministry of Manpower (MoM) plans to introduce a Safety Case regime for high hazard plants in the Process Industry, using a similar approach to the European Union ‘Seveso’ Directive which has been enacted in the UK as the ‘Control of Major Accident Hazard’ (COMAH) Regulations. This legislation places a high demand on those operating hazardous plants to demonstrate that they have taken ‘all reasonable measures’ to prevent major accidents and limit their consequences. 

For sites holding an inventory of dangerous substances above certain thresholds for flmmability, toxicity or eco-toxicity, a key requirement is to write a Safety Case. This document presents a demonstration that all Major Accident Hazards have been identifid, and that suitable risk controls have been implemented which provide protection throughout the lifecycle of the plant. There needs to be robust management arrangements to support the required level of protection, covering key elements of a Process Safety Management system. 

Preparation of Safety Cases in the UK follows detailed guidance from the UK Health & Safety Executive (HSE), which gives key criteria for information to be included in the Safety Case. This requires prescribed information and demonstrations under the headings; Descriptive Aspects, Predictive Aspects, Management System, Technical Measures, Environmental Aspects and Emergency Planning. This course will provide practical guidance on providing this data to a suitable level of detail, outlining the need for a multi-disciplinary team and detailed project programme with key milestones. 

A key requirement for Safety Cases is to identify potential Major Accidents and conduct a proportionate risk assessment to demonstrate that ‘all measures necessary’ have been applied. This aspect is fundamental to all the other demonstrations in the Safety Case, and has resulted in many being rejected by the HSE during the assessment phase. This course will provide a detailed approach for identifying major accidents, developing a ‘representative set’ of scenarios for the site, and carrying out a proportionate and quantifid risk assessment for these scenarios. The objective is to show that ‘relevant good practice’ has been applied in order to reduce risks to ‘as low as reasonably practicable’ (ALARP).

Who should attend:

This course has been designed for people likely to be affected by the new Safety Case regime. It will provide a greater understanding for Senior Managers, Process Safety Professionals and Senior Engineers in the detailed requirements for preparing Safety Cases and the resources and timescales likely to be required.

Key Learning Points:

• Gain awareness of the Safety Case regime planned for Singapore
• Understand what needs to be included in a Safety Case
• Have insight on a practical approach for identifying and assessing Major Accident Hazards
• Understand the signifiant time and resource requirement to write a Safety Case
• Be an intelligent buyer of specialist support for aspects of the Safety Case
• Improve awareness of best practice based on the stringent requirements of the UK HSE