Recommendations: Evolution of an Approach

“The hardest thing is writing a recommendation for someone we know.”  — Kin Hubbard We’ve all heard, over and over, that data without analysis is useless. Well, analysis without recommendations is just as useless. Unfortunately, many young engineers are incredible analysts but then mistakenly believe that their analysis will stand on its own, that the [...]

By |2025-01-09T10:31:25-06:00January 9th, 2025|PHA, Process Safety, Process Safety Management|Comments Off on Recommendations: Evolution of an Approach

Process Safety Concerns: Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling

“Recycling lithium-ion batteries is a complex and inherently risky process.”  — Brian O’Connor, NFPA Recently, a lithium-ion battery-powered Cybertruck exploded outside of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas. It wasn't the Li-ion batteries that exploded, though. It was a cargo of fuel and fireworks. In the case of the Li-ion battery recycling plant in [...]

By |2025-01-08T09:15:00-06:00January 2nd, 2025|Chemicals, Current Events, Process Safety, Process Safety Management, Workplace Safety|Comments Off on Process Safety Concerns: Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling

Bhopal: 40 Years Later

“You can’t let your failures define you. You have to let your failures teach you.”  — Barack Obama Forty years ago, on December 3, 1984, the Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India released 45 tons of methyl isocyanate. The official toll of immediate deaths is 2,259 people. Estimates of the final death toll ranges but [...]

By |2024-12-03T11:58:08-06:00December 3rd, 2024|Current Events, Process Safety|1 Comment

Odor Complaints: Can You Smell That Smell?

“The first condition of understanding a foreign country is to smell it.”  — Rudyard Kipling A few weeks ago, a lot of folks in this area found themselves obsessively scraping the bottoms of their boots. Based on the smell that seemed to be following them around, they were sure that they had stepped in something [...]

By |2025-01-14T13:47:22-06:00November 14th, 2024|Chemicals, Current Events, Gas, Process Safety|Comments Off on Odor Complaints: Can You Smell That Smell?

Dia de los Muertos: When the CSB Reports Fatalities

“To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.”  — Thomas Campbell Remembering the dead. For those U.S. military personnel who died while serving, we have Memorial Day, the last Monday in May. For those who died doing their job, we now have the International Worker’s Memorial Day, on April 28. At my [...]

By |2025-01-14T13:50:26-06:00October 31st, 2024|Current Events, Process Safety, Workplace Safety|Comments Off on Dia de los Muertos: When the CSB Reports Fatalities

Hot Work Permits: Has the EPA Created a New Fire Hazard?

“Paper doesn’t save people. People save people.”  — Dan Peterson I don’t know anyone in a regulated community that likes regulations. Some may accept them because they bring clarity in a confusing situation, but no one likes them. Even with the best of intentions, someone that must comply with a lot of regulations worries that [...]

By |2025-01-14T13:53:02-06:00October 10th, 2024|Current Events, Process Safety, Process Safety Management|Comments Off on Hot Work Permits: Has the EPA Created a New Fire Hazard?

Restarting a Plant: Do You Really Need a PSSR?

“Although no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.”  — Carl Bard Constellation Energy just signed a 20-year deal with Microsoft to provide clean energy—or at least carbon-free energy—from Unit 1 of the Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant. The plan is [...]

By |2025-01-14T13:55:36-06:00September 26th, 2024|Chemicals, Current Events, PHA, Process Safety, Process Safety Management, Workplace Safety|Comments Off on Restarting a Plant: Do You Really Need a PSSR?

Process Safety: Proper Maintenance is Essential

“If at any time [federal] inspectors identify something that needs to be addressed, our team does so immediately.”  — Elizabeth Ward, company spokesperson for Boar’s Head Provision Co. I was once a Scoutmaster. One of the most coveted items that my younger Scouts could earn was the Totin’ Chip, which granted them the right to [...]

By |2025-01-14T13:57:52-06:00September 19th, 2024|Current Events, Process Safety, Process Safety Management|Comments Off on Process Safety: Proper Maintenance is Essential

Improving Safety: Lessons from Blue Food

“Did you ever notice, there’s no blue food? Whenever I say that, people say, ‘Ha! What about blueberries?’ But no-o-o…blueberries are purple.”  — George Carlin My wife loves blue food. She has George Carlin to thank for that. It’s not because George Carlin’s comedy convinced my wife to love blue food. It’s because George Carlin’s [...]

By |2024-09-12T11:37:41-05:00September 12th, 2024|Process Safety, Workplace Safety|Comments Off on Improving Safety: Lessons from Blue Food

Unusual Process Hazards: Manhole Covers

“If I had a nickel for every time this happened, I’d have two nickels. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice. Right?”  — Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirz Friends and acquaintances recently flooded my inbox with stories about a series of sewer explosions near the north riverfront of St. Louis. It launched several [...]

By |2025-01-14T13:58:57-06:00September 5th, 2024|Chemicals, Current Events, Process Safety|1 Comment
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