Remote Projects

Beville Offers Remote Project Solutions

Safety has always been paramount in the petrochemical and refinery industry, and there is a renewed awareness during COVID-19. Likewise, Beville is committed to the health and safety of all employees and clients during this time. Given the current world situation, there is no better time than the present to look at ways to save costs without cutting corners. Below is a summary of the remote Human Factors Engineering services Beville offers.

Human Factors Analysis

Anyone who has worked with Beville knows that we pride ourselves on going on-site and talking directly with the operators. Input from operators is mandatory for human factors. With travel and site restrictions in place, this may not be possible right now, but the need for human factors has never been greater.

From workload studies to the review and design of control room alarms and displays, Beville engages in fast-paced, hands-on projects. Based on knowledge, skills, and data acquired during the past three decades, Beville has developed many new methodologies that minimize the need for on-site data collection while maximizing product quality. Beville is currently utilizing video-conferencing and other team platforms to collect and analyze data in order to lessen in-person meetings as much as possible.

Staffing Analyses

Data-Driven Console Staffing

– Beville has analyzed over 400 console operator positions and has spent more than 2000 hours in control rooms. All these activities have been recorded and documented in Beville’s workload database. Building on this data, we have developed a method of quickly and non-intrusively providing a general assessment of console operator workload based on DCS data, specifically alarms and control moves.

Field Upset Staffing

- The ability to bring the units to a safe, stable condition in response to a process upset sets the minimum (24/7) staffing requirement for field operators. Through a series of table-top discussions with knowledgeable and experienced client personnel, the minimum field staffing is quantified. Upset workload analysis involves: (1) identifying a worst case upset, (2) defining upset response tasks, (3) identifying consequences of inaction, and (4) applying risk, effort, and weighting factor ratings to each task to determine full time equivalents (FTE).

Comparative Staffing Analysis

- Utilizing Beville’s 35+ years of experience and extensive database from hundreds of facilities, Beville can compare staffing levels from other locations with similar units and capacities to determine if an area is potentially over or understaffed. This analysis can be completed quickly and provides an excellent starting point to identify areas that may need a more in-depth workload assessment.

Relief Operators/ Overtime

- A 24/7 post or position requires more than four operators if overtime is to be kept to a manageable level. So how many are needed? That depends, but it can be calculated. Given how much time off from the job (vacation, illness, etc.) and how much time not working at their job (special assignment, training, extra for turnarounds), the number of operators required can be calculated to achieve different levels of overtime.

Alarm Management

The purpose of the alarm system is to assist the operator in detecting process upsets that require his or her assessment and response. The two guiding principles for alarm management are: (1) Alarms should prompt a unique operator action, and (2) Alarms are not a substitute for an operator's routine surveillance of the unit.

Alarm System Assessment

- Utilizing knowledge gained from over 200 previous alarm rationalizations, your current alarm system will be compared to Beville rules of thumb for alarm to controller ratio and configured alarm priority distribution. If your current alarm system does not meet these metrics, a more detailed review of the alarms will be conducted. Alarm priorities will be evaluated and recommended upon the urgency of operator response and the severity of the consequences of inaction. If Beville determines an alarm is not needed, a justification for removal will be provided.

Alarm Response Analysis

- Working in conjunction with client personnel, the entire alarm system will be examined.  Beville will obtain the DCS database and create a master alarm database. Then, Beville rationalizes the alarm database in-house (applying templates developed from previous analyses) while documenting: Priority/Cause/Verification/Response/Consequence of Inaction for all proposed alarms. Additionally, Beville will supply a justification for the removal of any currently enabled alarms. Next, a series of conference calls will be conducted with the client to resolve outstanding action items and review & approve recommended alarm changes.  Finally, the alarm database will be updated and delivered for DCS configuration.

Display Design

As in all information presentation, display design requires an understanding of what information needs to be conveyed to the recipient. Adding unnecessary information results in a cumbersome, "noisy" system. Beville can help create an interface structure that allows the operator to quickly access the right information at the right time. In general, the interface should be hierarchical in nature, where (1) different displays are created that match their use and (2) the displays are organized into a structured information environment.

Documentation Review

Documentation is an essential resource for operators during training, daily operation (rounds), and, most critically, during emergency response scenarios. Usability needs to be considered in the creation of any tool or aid. Using the following human factors guidelines as a start, Beville will assess operator documentation and make recommendations for improvement.

• Focus on the end user, the operator
   
• Know what your users know
   
• Focus on behavior
   
• Ensure usable format