Category Archives: System Optimization

Learning from Failure

Posted on May 17, 2018 by Brian Chapin

“Failure is only opportunity to begin again. Only this time, more wisely.” –Henry Ford We often push PSM practitioners to perform Incident Investigations for fairly minor events in the hopes that the lessons learned from those minor incidents will stop … Continue reading →

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Why we changed our element “Guidelines” to be called “Written Plans”

Posted on July 28, 2017 by Brian Chapin

In mid-february we changed every reference to Guideline in the example templates to Written Plan. This change was made to the Google Drive and logged on 2/3/17. Although I have used guideline for a very long time, it was really just out of habit – it’s … Continue reading →

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Management Of Change (MOC) for Personnel

Posted on April 19, 2017 by Brian Chapin

In response to a recent LinkedIn forum post, here’s a short discussion on why MOC should be implemented for some personnel changes. 1910.119(l)(1) The employer shall establish and implement written procedures to manage changes (except for “replacements in kind”) to … Continue reading →

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Pencil-Whipping can Kill

Posted on December 15, 2016 by Brian Chapin

What is it? Pencil-whipping is when you complete a form, record, or document without having performed the implied work or without supporting data or evidence. Here are some common examples in NH3 refrigeration: Completing “word orders” without conducting the work … Continue reading →

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Opinion: Why many Safety Programs fail to get results

Posted on May 3, 2015 by Brian Chapin

The question that vexed me Over the past few years as a traveling PSM auditor I was exposed to hundreds of different safety programs. There were small, flat organizations with dozens of workers and large international conglomerates with thousands of … Continue reading →

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How should I FIX a PSM program?

Posted on October 16, 2012 by Brian Chapin

This might be one of the most common questions we’re asked: How do I resurrect a PSM program that has been neglected? Our answer is that you should deal with these broken programs no differently than if you are starting a … Continue reading →

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First, Do no Harm!

Posted on September 12, 2012 by Brian Chapin

The OSHA Law Blog has a nice post up called “Best Practices? Or Safety Run Amuck” about the unintended consequences that can occur when people rationalize their opinions as “Best Practice” without bothering to consult with the workers who are expected to … Continue reading →

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A few links I wanted to share…

Posted on August 16, 2012 by Brian Chapin

First up, S.K. Energy Consulting: There are some simple to understand articles on Floating Head Pressure and Optimizing Defrost. Check out the articles archives which contain almost 80 newsletters going back several years. Very informational site that I am surprised I … Continue reading →

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Refresher Training

Posted on February 17, 2012 by Brian Chapin

Many people struggle with Refresher Training. I think this is because the way they train to meet the PSM/RMP requirement is fundamentally flawed: Most places re-train each operator on EVERY SOP they are expected to perform at least every three … Continue reading →

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A debate on Management of Change

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Brian Chapin

Recently a group of safety yahoos got together to discuss a situation: You have a freezer with racking. The racking needs to be removed for XXXX reason. You hire a contractor to do the job. You evaluate and train the … Continue reading →

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