Closing the Gap Between Documented and Actual Process Safety
A petrochemical producer operating a single processing complex with several interconnected process units.
Synergy Nexus revalidated HAZOP studies and rebuilt management-of-change, eliminating undocumented interlock bypasses at the plant.
The plant's process safety management system rested on HAZOP studies conducted several years earlier, while a series of process modifications — a new bypass line, an upgraded control system, a revised operating envelope on one reactor train — proceeded without triggering the corresponding HAZOP revalidation the management-of-change process was designed to require. A near-miss involving a safety interlock that had been temporarily bypassed during a modification, and not restored on schedule, brought this systemic risk directly to leadership's attention.
Synergy Nexus revalidated the HAZOP studies for the three process units most affected by undocumented modifications, working directly with operations and process engineering to reconstruct what had actually changed on the ground. The management-of-change process was rebuilt around a mandatory HAZOP-revalidation trigger for any hazard-relevant modification, with process safety sign-off required before a change could be closed, and operations staff were trained specifically on interlock bypass authorization and restoration procedures.
Revalidated HAZOP studies across all three affected process units, closing the gap between documented and actual process configuration
Rebuilt the management-of-change process around a mandatory HAZOP-revalidation trigger, eliminating the specific gap that had allowed studies to go stale
Trained operations staff on interlock bypass authorization and restoration procedures, addressing the direct cause of the near-miss that prompted the engagement
Facing a comparable challenge?
Tell us about your organization and we will route you to the right partner.
Engineering Readiness for ISO 45001 Certification
Read case study →
Engineering Contractor HSE Prequalification and Monitoring
Read case study →
Repositioning Safety Culture Beyond Compliance Metrics
Read case study →
Rebuilding Emergency Response After a Well Control Incident
Read case study →
Engineering Barrier Management Across Aging Grid Assets
Read case study →
Process Safety and Asset Integrity Beyond the Checklist
Documentation and hazard control are structurally distinct disciplines; treating them as equivalent is where major-accident risk accumulates.
Contractor Safety Management for an Outsourced Workforce
Subcontractor safety performance becomes the principal's liability the moment work begins on a shared site.
Why Safety Culture Metrics Can Mislead Leadership
A declining incident rate is equally consistent with genuine safety improvement and with a workforce that has stopped reporting.