The benefits of a corrective action program are immeasurable, and in the oil and gas industry, these programs are an integral part of any quality management system. An effective corrective action system works to identify the root cause of an issue, generates action plans to reduce or eliminate the chance of recurrence, and provides for evaluation of solution effectiveness.
That being said, some companies struggle with implementing an effective corrective action management program. Below are some of the key elements of a successful corrective action program. 1. Have the right people leading your corrective action program. Put together a team to evaluate potential members for the program. Make sure that the people chosen understand the issue in question. Team members must have first-hand knowledge of the process being assessed. 2. Evaluation of Issue The corrective action team should collect data on similar issues that have occurred in the past. Subsequently this information needs to be analyzed and evaluated to determine applicable root causes. 3. Develop Corrective Action Plan The corrective action plan should identify the root cause of the issue, containment actions as well as specific action taken long term to reduce or eliminate the chance for a recurrence. Finally, ensure that the corrective and preventive action plan is properly communicated with applicable personnel within the organization. 4. Create Compliance Once the corrective action has been implemented, utilize the evaluation results to drive your corrective action impact. The impact analysis will create benchmarks and pinpoint opportunities for process improvements. Effectively managing your corrective action program is critical to your success. To find out how Accupoint can help improve the effectiveness of your corrective action program, please contact us today. Quality management for service supply organizations in the petroleum industry is ever-changing due to increasing demands from customers to adopt new standards and avoid future catastrophes. The API Spec Q2 standard outlines a risk-based quality management system as compared to a processed-based management system. API Spec Q2 is now fully implemented and accepting applications for certification from organizations around the world. This certification is rapidly becoming a requirement for many service supply organizations and will expand to become a global mandate in the near future.
Requirements Applicants must have procedures in place to address dozens of key QMS elements. These pertain to risk assessment, contingency planning, management of change, service-related product, process design, supply chain controls, and service quality planning. Other requirements involve preventive maintenance, inspection and test and the competency of personnel. According to John Modine, API’s vice president of Global Industry Services, “Any drilling service provider who is in compliance with the requirements can now receive API Spec Q2 certification.” SAM API Q2 Solution Accupoint’s web-based solution is an easy-to-use API Spec Q2 management system designed to ensure that compliance requirements are managed and monitored consistently. Using the latest technology and industry best practices, SAM™ streamlines the process and ensures an easy integration into this new standard. In addition, the solution is accessible from any web enabled device and connects multiple locations with real-time communications and up-to-date records and information. The SAM™ platform simplifies management of the requirements of API Spec Q2 standard, allowing for easy integration and compliance. It addresses all the key required components including;
Obtaining API Q2 certification is just the first step. Ensuring your quality management system stays compliant is the next. With 43 integrated modules and 85 built-in reports, administration and surveillance of the API Spec Q2 requirements is ensured. Contact us for any additional questions you may have on how to implement and maintain an API Spec Q2 quality Management program. During the stages of conception, designing, building, operating, and decommissioning in the petroleum industry, a quantitative risk analysis is a primary tool used to analyze the safety and risk management in an effort to control hazards and operate safely. The quantitative risk analysis can identify potential hazards, determine the likelihood of them occurring, and the consequences of the hazard should it arise.
Why Quantify Risk? Your company needs to be reliable and safe in the competitive petroleum industry. The potential harm to employees, the environment, assets, reputation and the local community should be priority number one. How Do You Quantify Risk? In most scenarios, the use of a HAZID can be applied. A HAZID can help identify the potential risks during installation or operation of your company's work. Often, a hazard can become a series of hazards as they break down into a plethora of hazards, also known as an event tree. That is, when one operation breaks down, the HAZID can pinpoint the likelihood of the consequential events that may happen. Not only can the HAZID determine what might happen next, the HAZID can also quantify the probability of the events to follow. Planning for the Future With the risk analysis tools in place, your company can easily plan for the future by identifying your risks and quantifying the likelihood of their occurrence. With proper risk management, your company can avoid unnecessary costs, downtime, and injury to workers. For more information on how Accupoint’s solutions can help you manage your risk assessment process, please contact us today. The Department of Labor states that on-the-job fatality rates are seven times higher for oil and gas extraction workers than all other industries. The only solution to this serious problem is proactive compliance with a comprehensive safety and health management program. Continual risk identification, analysis and policy enforcement are the keys to keeping workers safe and avoiding operational downtime.
Risk Assessments Hazards in oil and gas industry are divided between safety and injury dangers and health and illness hazards. Front-line supervisors should work with safety managers to conduct risk assessments that are founded on historical experience, analytical methods and field knowledge and judgement. A risk assessment will ask three basic questions for each possible event: what can go wrong, how likely will it occur and what are the impacts. Both qualitative and quantitative answers offer unique value. Safety planning and risk assessments require that everyone involved understands the objectives, the methods, the resources required and how the results will be applied. Standard Evaluation Methods A risk assessment generally involves four basic steps: hazard identification, frequency projection, consequence assessment and risk evaluation. Hazard identification methods include literature research, safety audits, periodic walk-throughs and what-if brainstorming. Popular tools include FMEA, HAZOP and HAZID. Frequency assessment methods include fault tree, event tree, human reliability and common cause failure analysis tools. Consequence assessment methods include source term, aquatic transport, atmospheric dispersion and blast and thermal radiation models. Popular evaluation methods include risk profiles, indexes, matrixes and density curves. The Hazard Identification (HAZID) Technique HAZID is a safety tool to describe activities that identify risks and associated events. Offshore petroleum facilities often use HAZIDs to identify potential hazards to personnel, such as injuries and illness, to the environment, such as spills and pollution, and operational issues, such as delays and production losses. Offshore petroleum leaders often use the HAZID technique to analyze operational procedures on vessels and machinery. A HAZID planning session will involve an interdisciplinary team that includes those who have experience with facility design, such as engineering, and facility operation, such as veteran employees. Together, they will use checklists to methodically brainstorm and identify potential hazards associated with each part of the system. A what-if analysis uses subjective questioning to ponder potential performance problems and their consequences. For example, if an intake air filter is blocked, this will reduce the air flow through the compressor, which will consume more energy and lead to functional inefficiencies. The solution is through monthly inspections and scheduled filter replacements. Contact us today to learn how Accupoint can streamline your safety, compliance and risk assessments processes. Securing materials and equipment is the first step in the supply chain. A company's competitiveness is directly influenced by the performance of suppliers. A supplier that does not perform well can add costs, cause serious delays and can damage your company's reputation. It is imperative to have a system to evaluate your suppliers. It will help you determine potential problems like low standards of quality, poor communication, and substandard resources. Every company needs to have a supplier evaluation model in place to measure a supplier's ability to comply with their contractual obligations.
Supplier evaluation will identify their strengths and weaknesses. Several criteria should be considered including quality, delivery, service, and flexibility. Generally, the most important factor is quality followed by delivery, service and then flexibility. An effective means of evaluating suppliers is assigning them to one of four categories based on performance: full partner, associate partner, high risk and incapable. A full partner meets or exceeds all expectations. An associate partner needs some work, but performs well overall. A high risk supplier must be carefully evaluated. They can be used for the production currently underway, but future contracts require consideration. An incapable supplier will be dropped as soon as possible as they cannot properly fulfill their obligations. Full Partner A full partner must be compatible with you company’s current and future business plan. They will always demonstrate high quality, on-time delivery, superior service and flexibility. The supplier participates in your automatic ordering system. They will provide full support quickly, and be available anytime for questions. A full partner should also assist with new designs and provide samples within one to two weeks. They will demonstrate an ability to develop new processes and be committed to research and development. They will not ship out-of-spec parts, and have well documented quality controls. They will optimize lead times and allow order flexibility within reason. They will show commitment to cost reductions and share their cost structures and pricing models. Associate Partner An associate partner will meet most of the criteria of a full partner. The associate partner should demonstrate a commitment to improving quality and delivery. You can work with them to develop action plans to meet your goals. The supplier must fulfill the needs of your company. They should be willing to work toward meeting the criteria to become a full partner. High Risk Partner A high risk partner is not compatible with the goals of your company. Their current quality and delivery are acceptable to maintain current production, but there is no benefit in expending the resources to bring them to associate or full partner status. The cost and quality are below your company’s acceptable standards. Incapable Partner Incapable suppliers do not meet quality standards. They do not demonstrate the capability of improving quality, delivery, service or flexibility. These suppliers must be dropped immediately. Evaluating the performance of suppliers using an Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) model helps to determine the importance of each criterion and interpret the findings. You will determine what is most important for your company, and use that to rate your suppliers. Supplier can be measured based on the four main criteria: quality, delivery, service and flexibility. To determine the rest of the criterion you should consider whether the attributes are “soft” criteria (like supplier commitment or service) or “hard” quantifiable criteria (like the supplier's ability to fulfill orders). When thinking about cost, consider that the total cost of a product includes all the factors that go into getting your product to market in addition to its initial procurement cost. For further information on how Accupoint can help your critical supplier management process, contact us today. |
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