PTQ Q3 2025 Issue

Flare

TC705_03

XV701_06

Operator error 42%

E-706

FC701_05

D701

Equipment failure 36%

Dist. column

T706

LC706_01

PC701_02

Process upset 22%

P707A

PI701_20

P707B

PI701_21

LC706_01

Figure 5 Risk of operator error

FC701_04

Spray

LC701_01

these activities in pre-FEED and FEED will establish solid foundations for the team to execute efficiently during the engineering phase. Brownfield projects Brownfield projects can be challenging, primarily because there is a need to create a baseline on existing operations to understand where to focus resources. One approach is to perform an operator performance gap analysis, which exam - ines the state of elements such as work team design, alarm management, HMI, and control room design. This is not as detailed as a focused gap analysis, but provides enough information to understand where the biggest issues lie. This can lead to the development of an operator performance philosophy and potentially more detailed gap analyses or focused projects. Another big challenge is the need to justify projects with an ROI. There are operational benefits in terms of safety and profitability, but putting a number on this is difficult. However, data mining of loss, incident, or process informa - tion can provide insight into where operator error could have been avoided and the associated cost of this. For example, if the operator missed an important alarm that led to an unplanned shutdown, was alarm management the issue? Was the operator fatigued, or was there no level 1 display to provide situation awareness of critical information that would have headed off the abnormal situation? Many projects fail because they lack an understanding of the fundamental requirements of any solution. The perfor - mance of an operational task analysis is essential. How can an HMI be effectively designed if there is no understanding of what the operators need to do? Performing an initial task analysis can avoid rework for each project. A single task analysis can support a workload study, HMI design, control room design, alarm design, and even state- based or procedural automation design. As stated before, ‘less is more’ can also be beneficial in designing fewer graphic displays based on only information that needs to be presented to the operator. It is essential to involve the HF team as early as possible in projects. Benefits Key benefits to investing in operator performance include safer and more reliable operations by mitigating the risk of

TC701_03

FC701_01

E-70 2

FC701_03

P703A

P703B

Figure 6 Level 2 display: distillation column

operator error (see Figure 5 ). High-performance graphics present the plant data differently, making it easy to under - stand and detect abnormal situations before the alarms occur using bar charts. Bar charts enable the console opera - tor to quickly identify the process variable in normal, drifting towards too low or too high without knowing the exact value of the process variable and setpoint. New console operators can effectively identify abnormal operating conditions simi - lar to seasoned operators using well-designed, high-perfor - mance graphics. The intent of high-performance graphics is for console operators to quickly detect, diagnose, and respond to poten - tial abnormal conditions and prevent the situation from worsening. When abnormal event occurrences happen, the combination of quality alarms and high-performance graph - ics enables efficient root cause detection. The operator may quickly take appropriate actions to bring operations back to normal and avoid a consequence (see Figure 6 ). Improvements are documented after implementing advanced operator displays (see Table 1 ). Sustaining the improvements One of the biggest oversights of any improvement project is relying only on the new technology to ensure success with - out incorporating operator development to effectively utilise the new enhancements. Operators need to be effectively trained (including annual refresher training) on how to use the improvements. After completing an operator performance enhancement project, it must be sustained. Unfortunately, alarm manage - ment cannot just be improved with expectations that it will manage itself. For example, ISA 18.2 indicates alarm man - agement has a lifecycle that should be a sustainable program with ownership, including annual audits to ensure long-term

PTQ Q3 2025