In any legal case it is very important to establish a true partnership between the law firm and the expert witness. This partnership facilitates an effective, balanced team with both technical and legal knowledge. This will provide the client with the most cost-effective solution and best chance for a favorable outcome during trial or arbitration. […]
On March 25, 2016 I published a Blog titled “Expert Witness, a Becht Engineering Service to Avoid”. This Blog focused on a number of elements that can be used to assure projects do not result in litigation. These elements include: Developing a sound, complete scope of work Selecting a qualified contractor Using proven industry standards […]
This blog outlines ways to think about reliability to help drive a culture of continuous improvement. It is the fourth in a series of Blogs on improving plant reliability performance through changes in culture, programs, equipment design, maintenance and operation. The principles we applied in implementing successful reliability programs in a number of operating plants […]
This is the third in a series of Blogs on improving plant reliability performance through changes in culture, programs, equipment design, maintenance and operation. [Click link to review Making Bad Actor Elimination Programs Work; or the second blog, Reliability Beliefs – Driving Organizational Accountability] This blog compares experiences in successful high-altitude expedition climbing and the effort to […]
This is the second in a series of Blogs on improving plant reliability performance through improvement in culture, programs and equipment design, maintenance and operation. This Blog focuses on Reliability Beliefs – a key element in organizational accountability for everyone to do the right thing every time. Read the first blog in the series – […]
I personally went through Hurricane Rita and Hurricane Ike during my career living in the Gulf Coast. Restarting our plants after these storms was challenging, home life was miserable without power for three weeks and traveling over 100 miles north to find gasoline, food and water for family and neighbors was time consuming and hazardous. […]
This is the first in a series of Blogs on improving plant reliability programs through improvements in culture, programs and equipment performance. This Blog focuses on Bad Actor Elimination. The second part in this series is titled Reliability Beliefs – Driving Organizational Accountability (click) Most plants have many pieces of equipment that are chronic problems. […]
In many cases operating companies and financial institutions utilize Due Diligence studies for critical input on “Go/No Go” decisions for plant acquisitions. Once the decision is made to purchase the plant, the Due Diligence study is often put on the shelf. The company purchasing the new asset then faces significant challenges integrating the asset into […]
Compliance with the Process Safety Management rule, OSHA 1910.119, is a requirement for plants processing certain highly hazardous materials exceeding threshold quantities. The rule requires the owner to demonstrate all equipment has been purchased and installed in accordance with recognized industry standards. Maintenance practices must also be according to Recognized and Generally Accepted Good Engineering […]
The Process Safety Management rule (PSM), OSHA 1910.119, was implemented in the early 90’s, more than 20 years ago. Implementation was driven by a number of tragic accidents in the process industry. However, despite the long history of the rule and multiple preventable, catastrophic incidents, many companies still have not fully implemented PSM. Companies that […]
