SAIMC Secunda branch hosts first technology evening for 2017
SIL is defined as a method of numerically expressing the amount of risk reduction required to reduce identified risks to tolerable values.
SECUNDA – The Society for Automation, Instrumentation, Measurement and Control (SAIMC) Secunda branch held their first technology evening for the year at Honeywell in Secunda on 2 February.
Mr Divan Pretorius from Proconics did a presentation on safety engineering and the topic discussed was: SIL: Common Misconceptions and the Importance of the Maintenance Phase.
SIL is defined as a method of numerically expressing the amount of risk reduction required to reduce identified risks to tolerable values.
It is widely used in the petrochemical industry and is also being explored in various other industries.
The most common misconception as highlighted by Mr Pretorius, is that SIL is always associated with high costs, when in actual fact the main purpose of SIL is to prevent financial losses, environmental damage and loss of lives.
Another misconception is that people think that SIL can be applied to a single piece of equipment, which is false.
An entire loop consisting of a sensing element (transmitter), control element (system) and final element (control valve) is used to determine the SIL rating for a specific safety instrumented function.
It is also important to note that SIL 4 is only required for the nuclear industry.
According to statistics, 36 per cent of incidents involving control systems occur during the maintenance and operating phase.
Mr Pretorius highlighted a couple of proposed solutions to improve the maintenance and operating phases of SIL loops:
– Ensure the trip testing is not only regular, but according to the safety manuals.
– Maintenance package needs to be developed and handed over after implementations of SIL loops.
– Maintenance needs to keep a paper trail of all calibration certificates and quality control documents.
– SIL awareness training needs to be conducted where SIL loops are implemented.
– Maintenance audits should be conducted on SIL loops to ensure maintenance plans have been followed as specified.
“We thank Mr Pretorius for an enlightening approach to SIL and the maintenance aspect thereof,” said Mr Johan Maritz, branch chairman.
“All instrumentation and control related mechanicians, technicians and/or engineers are welcome to attend our monthly technology events this year.
“Thank you to Honeywell for sponsoring good food and beverages.”
All the Secunda SAIMC presentations will earn CPD points for ECSA registered persons and any enquiries can be directed to the branch chairman, Mr Johan Maritz, at johanmaritz260@gmail.com or 082 856 3865.
