Facilities governed by the OSHA Process Safety Management Standard, 29 CFR 1910.119, are required to implement a Mechanical Integrity Program. Equipment used to process, store or handle highly hazardous chemicals covered under the standard must be designed, constructed, installed and maintained to minimize the releases of such chemicals. The Mechanical Integrity Program must include the following types of PSM-covered equipment:
Pressure vessels and storage tanks
Piping systems and components such as valves
Relief and vents systems and devices
Emergency Shutdown systems
Controls (monitoring devices, sensors, alarms and interlocks)
Pumps
Elements of a Mechanical Integrity Program include:
Identifying and categorizing PSM-critical equipment and instrumentation
Equipment manufacturers' recommendations and mean time to failure rates
Inspection and test methods and rationale for inspection frequencies
Criteria for acceptable inspection and test results
Maintenance procedures
Training of maintenance personnel
Recordkeeping
In this session we will focus on techniques for improving the quality of Mechanical Integrity audits. Good audits "peel the onion" several layers deep to identify strengths and weaknesses of the program. The goal is to drive continuous improvement.
