RIASSUNTO
Abstract
This paper proposes solutions to safety issues by means of modifications to equipment engineering designs. Additionally, instilling a design-for-safety (DFS) philosophy helps further promote a safety culture. DFS is a key component of engineering. It is essential to anticipate and visualize potential safety hazards in a design at a nascent stage and solicit feedback from customers and field personnel. In most cases, making minor design changes early can greatly reduce the probability of possible hazards. Additional unexpected benefits of this process can include reductions in injuries, costs, and downtime. One example of this DFS concept is the addition of a hurdle block to avoid finger pinching when sliding pipe in pipe on a modular structure. Another example is the conceptualized design of a "mistake proof" manifold stack, which can only be stacked in ascending order of heavy to light weight. This helps avert the risk of heavy objects falling and reduces the need to lift heavyweight objects. Without using DFS, equipment might be manufactured that could present potential hazards later. However, DFS helps identify potential hazards during the design stages by performing failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA). Critical thinking is crucial. Safety features, such as additional gussets, pins, blocks, etc., that do not serve any core functionality are added to mitigate these potential fallacies and hazards. This paper provides examples to engineering solutions wherein a combination of DFS techniques and field feedback helped reduce potential hazards. Using this approach should help instill a safety culture. Enhancing safety has always been a challenge in engineering applications, and the oil and gas industry is no exception. A collaborative effort in which design changes are requested from field operations not only adds value to the design from a safety perspective but also ensures customer input is considered.