Assessing resilience engineering based on safety culture and managerial factors

• Published in: Process safety progress Vol. 31; no. 1; pp. 17 - 18
• Main Authors: Shirali, G.H.A., Mohammadfam, I., Motamedzade, M., Ebrahimipour, V., Moghimbeigi, A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company 01-03-2012
• Subjects: Complex systems; Culture; Dynamical systems; Dynamics; Indicators; Management; refinery; Resilience; resilience engineering; Safety; safety culture
• ISSN: 1066-8527; 1547-5913
• DOI: 10.1002/prs.10485

Resilience engineering (RE) is the inherent capacity of a plant to cope with complex and unexpected events. The real challenge for RE is to recognize that complex systems are dynamic and that dynamic systems may sometimes change from a state of dynamic stability into a state of dynamic instability. This article explores RE based on safety culture indicators and managerial factors. In a plant survey we measured seven safety culture indicators and four management factors that are known to influence RE. We describe a simple survey method that can be used to identify deficiencies related to RE. For example, we found three major problems; that is, (a) poor safety training, (b) poor management of change, and (c) poor attitudes (looking for scapegoats and placing production ahead of safety). © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog, 2012