MITIGATING
DISASTERS
F
lange integrity management is essential, as evidenced by the events
below:
)
In 1988, 167 lives were lost on a platform in the Piper Alpha disaster. A
report into the disaster judged that the operator had used inadequate
maintenance and safety procedures. From then on, the attitude to
asset integrity, including safety, reliability and efficiency, in the North
Sea oil and gas industry changed entirely.
)
In 2010, the cost of the Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Horizon oil spill was
eleven lives and several billion dollars. The accident involved a well
integrity failure, followed by a loss of hydrostatic control of the well.
)
In a Californian refinery, improper tightening of a 4 in. 300# gasket
resulted in a high consequence event. The refinery reported that
consequential damages due to production loss, fines, and rework were
in excess of US$500 million.
)
A three year study on the impact of leaking pipe flanges showed
a major refinery averaged 630 leaks/yr resulting in 380 000 lb of
volatile organic compounds (VOC) being released into the atmosphere.
Estimated monetary losses from fines, materials, and labour charges
averaged US$440 000 per year (not including production losses).
1
From an operator’s point of view
The impact from leakage of connections in process pipework
can be extremely serious, and with many thousands of
connections onsite, from flanges to valves to small-
bore connections, maintaining integrity and 100%
containment is an extremely high priority.
Pipeline pre-commissioning and leak
testing is carried out to ensure that plant
Chris Cashmore, SPX Bolting Systems, UK,
addresses the necessity of flange integrity
management software for the mitigation and
avoidance of high consequence events.
25
