Author Archives: Brian Chapin

About Brian Chapin

PSM / RMP Compliance Consultant

GCAP calls the National Response Center

GCAP has posted their 10th podcast. This episode they call the National Response Center on a training call. They’ve edited the call to speed it up, but if you haven’t had to call the NRC before I think you’ll be surprised how … Continue reading

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Stop Fantasizing about your Dream Team and get to work!

I’m continually amazed how often I come across underperforming organizations that don’t try to improve because they feel the caliber of their employees is inadequate to achieve higher performance. It may well be true that your team is suboptimal in … Continue reading

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Three kinds of Ammonia Operator

Over the past few years I have had the opportunity to work with quite a few Ammonia Operators. Recently I chose to oversee the training of a new operator who had no previous refrigeration experience. In preperation I talked with … Continue reading

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Fatal spill brings $91,000 fine

South Carolina regulators have fined a Pennsylvania company $91,000 for a string of emergency preparedness failures they say occurred before a fatal chemical leak near its Swansea plant last year. The Department of Health and Environmental Control says the wrong … Continue reading

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Classic Ammonia Video

This video has been around for quite some time. Whenever I’ve been shown it I’ve been told it’s real. Some internet research leads me to believe it may not be. Still – it’s a good idea to show this to … Continue reading

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Unattended Operation? Better get Ammonia Detection!

Certainly your ammonia technician will pick up any minor leaks during a regularly scheduled walk-through of the facility. But what if that leak starts at 6pm Friday evening and everyone is gone for the weekend? You had better have some … Continue reading

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Ammonia PSM Coordinator? Go Gemba!

“Gemba” is a Japanese term for “where the real work is done.” In manufacturing, one of the best things your Kaizen or Process Improvement team can do is spend some time on the shop floor. There you see the problems … Continue reading

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National Emphasis Program targeting Chemicals to Continue

“OSHA’s scrutiny of the refinery industry and of chemical facilities covered by the Process Safety Management standard will increase, Jordan Barab, deputy assistant secretary of OSHA said in an Oct. 27 speech at the 2010 Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center … Continue reading

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VFD Savings Calculator

Here’s a simple spreadsheet I made up a while ago to calculate the possible savings using Variable Frequency Drives. Download VFD Fan Savings Calculator

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A Reporters guide to Ammonia – Some Basic Information

One thing you can usually count on when you see a news article about an ammonia release is that the reporter is unfamiliar with ammonia refrigeration. That’s not surprising – they can’t be expected to know everything! This article is … Continue reading

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