The new edition 2 has made great strides in addressing what needs to be done long-term at the site to demonstrate the claimed performance. During design and implementation, the reliability parameters for a new system or technology are estimated based on manufacturer information and any in-service information available. Once the equipment is approved for process start-up, the equipment transitions from being a new installation to an existing one that must be proven to be fit for purpose as an on-going activity.  

There is plenty of data at most sites, but unfortunately much of it is often not in a form that can be easily accessed for tracking.  The challenge is to get just the right amount of data at an appropriate time resolution.

Read more about this third article of a series. Don’t miss the next issue!

SIS-TECH Solutions now celebrates 17 years in business. Founded by Dr. Angela Summers in 1999, SIS-TECH has evolved to be an industry leader in the implementation of instrumentation and controls in safety applications. 

Our team has expanded significantly over the years and since we support the testing of safety instrumentation, such as safety alarms and SIS, during turnarounds and short outages, we grow significantly for periods of time. Our on-boarding processes are state of the art and ensure consistency of our work.

Key team members include Dr. Angela E. Summers, PhD., P.E., who is the founder, President and CEO of SIS-TECH, Eric Randecker Business Development Manager, Pete Fuller Applications Advisor, Brant Smith ICE Director, Dean Bonifay Loss Prevention Advisor, and finally, S.C.A.I. Advisors include Don Zissa, William Hearn and Randy Hubbard.

For many oil, gas, and chemical companies, functional safety is achieved through implementation of process control and safety systems after inherently safer design practices are applied to the process design. Functional safety projects implement a variety of safeguards, including safety controls, alarms, and interlocks (SCAI). However, if these projects are not executed correctly, or if the systems are not operated and maintained per the design assumptions, the SCAI will not provide the desired amount of risk reduction. Functional safety assessments (FSA) are essential to sustaining the risk management plan and preserving the intended return on investment of the project.

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In the following example, insufficient, inadequate, and in some cases lack of functional safety assessment (FSA) led to and explosion with tremendous consequences.

Impact:

• explosion and fire
• 11 fatalities and 17 injuries
• serious environmental damage
• significant US Gulf Coast economic losses
• rig destroyed
• significant reputation damage to all parties

Read more about the Macondo incident here.

Houston, Texas – SIS-TECH is now offering workshops with topics such as:

• What Makes a SIS;
• IEC 61511 Edition 2 Changes;
• Independence and Separation of Process Control and Safety;
• Functional Safety Auditing; and
• Instrument Reliability and Maintenance Management Systems.

These workshops are an excellent opportunity to speak to the leading experts in the safe and reliable automation of chemical processes and to network, ask questions, and gather quality information about the latest process safety practices. The SIS-TECH Workshops include technical lectures, Q&A, and live demonstrations, followed by a cocktail reception.

We are currently holding these workshops throughout the Gulf Coast region. Make sure to visit our new and improved website www.SIS-TECH.com to join our mailing list and to stay informed on the latest news concerning SIS-TECH.

Pete Fuller of SIS-TECH received a call from a corporate engineer needing a safety instrumented system to address 2 hazard scenarios associated with a plant in Louisiana. The corporate engineer had heard about a Diamond-SIS installation at a sister plant in Texas, where the system has provided several years of problem-free protection for some significant safety risk. The client needed a quick solution for the Louisiana plant as the equipment was about to go into a turnaround and the client needed a system that could be installed while they were down for the turnaround.

After a thorough analysis of the system requirements, SIL 3 Diamond-SIS became the technical solution of choice due to its cost and that it was the only logic solver on the market that could be designed, tested and delivered in only a few weeks. Read more about this Diamond-SIS application.

Please contact Pete Fuller for more information on SIS-TECH Applications.

Jose Angel Camacho joined SIS-TECH Solutions LP as a Senior SCAI consultant to take a lead role in the design and implementation of state-of-the-art safety controllers for safety control, alarm, and interlock applications. Jose has more than 24 years of experience, is a certified functional safety engineer and is a recognized expert in safety instrumented systems.  Jose is bilingual and conducts training in English and Spanish.

SIS-TECH introduces the ICE-Tablet™. This innovative new product reduces the time required to execute turnaround testing of protective instrumentation. The ICE-Tablet™ was “designed to manage work flow and to ensure quality record retention” according to Brant Smith, Director of SIS-TECH’s ICE Team. The ICE-Tablet™ is constructed of rugged hardware suitable for hazardous environments and the user interface is ergonomically configured for use in the field. The innovative design, slim profile, and HART compatibility allows the ICE-Tablet™ to support in-service testing of any protective systems, including safety controls, alarms, interlocks, and safety instrumented systems.

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