In August of this year, OSHA fines increased 78%. This was to make up for 26 years of no change in penalties. Going forward, the fines will be adjusted yearly to account for inflation.
The bottom line is: If you’re not following proper safety protocols, it will cost you big time.
Recently in Valve Magazine, accident prevention specialist Brian L. Fielkow wrote about how safety needs to go beyond just compliance with rules and regulations. It needs to be woven into the fabric of your organization. To help companies achieve this, Fielkow provides tips on how to create a world-class safety culture.
At Allied, our main goal is to ensure the safety of personnel and equipment by making sure the pressure relief devices installed in plants and along pipelines are always performing their best.
Here are five questions to ask to determine whether your safety valves are really keeping you safe.
1. Do you know exactly what valves you have and where they’re installed?
This may seem like a silly question, but it’s very easy to lose track of valves in a large facility. This is especially true as plants age and the workforce turns over.
As of 2013, the average age of manufacturing assets and equipment was almost 20 years. During those decades, employees have come and gone and recordkeeping practices have changed. With this perspective, you can easily see how valves could get lost.
If you aren’t 100% positive your records are up-to-date, consider performing a plant survey to identify the location, nameplate information, and application for every valve in your facility. This will get you back on the right safety track for the future.
2. Are your valves installed correctly?
This means upright and with the spindle in a vertical position. Valves installed horizontally or on the diagonal may fail.
It also means the inlet piping is short and direct and the outlet piping is fully supported, without putting any weight on the valve. Piping problems can cause a valve to not seat properly, which in turn can result in leakage.
3. Are you operating your valves far enough from the set point?
A valve’s set point is NOT the recommended operating pressure. For most valves you shouldn’t operate higher than 90% of the set point. Doing so can cause the valve to simmer, or warn, which over time will damage the valve and result in leakage. It can also cause the valve to actuate at the wrong time. All of these things impede a valve’s ability to do its part for the safety of your plant.
Also, while it may seem counterintuitive, operating at a lower pressure can actually increase your production efficiency. This is because the valve is less likely to simmer or actuate, which means less valve damage, less leakage, and less downtime.
4. Are you testing and repairing your valves regularly?
In the first question, we saw how easy it can be to lose track of a valve. One consequence is that those valves aren’t tested or repaired to ensure they’re up to snuff, meaning that if an overpressure event occurred, they might not open.
We recommend following a preventative maintenance program for safety and pressure relief valves that involves testing once a year and repair every three to five years. More often than that, and you can actually damage your valve. Less often, and you can’t be sure your valve will work in an emergency.
5. Are the people working on your valves qualified for the work they’re doing?
Finally, everyone who performs any service or maintenance work on your valves should be properly trained for the task.
Service and maintenance done poorly can make an unsafe situation even worse, potentially endangering your equipment, your facility, and your employees. For that reason, it’s highly recommended that you limit all valve work to factory-trained and certified technicians.
If you answered “no” to any of these questions, your valves may not really be keeping you safe. Contact us to learn how we can help you get to “yes.” Learn more about valves and process safety management.