August 16, 2018 – The Three Questions of Temporary Systems and Components

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By Emil Casciano, Chief Nuclear Officer
August 16, 2018

Recently, there have been repeated instances where temporary systems and components have been disturbed, resulting in a loss of cleanliness, damage to equipment and potentially serious injury.

The most recent occurrence was when persons unknown disconnected a 440v power cable without the knowledge of whether or not the system was de-energized. Had the unknown person disconnected the cable while it was energized, the person could have been seriously injured. Since the owner of the system was not involved and unknowing of the disconnection, the system was subsequently turned on for routine operations, causing the exposed connector to be energized, which posed a serious risk to personnel and equipment.

Handling, operation, installation or removal of temporary systems and components must be performed by the organization that installed the system, and they must be contacted if the system must be removed or rerouted. There have been instances where removal of temporary systems or components without the knowledge of the owning trade has caused damage to finished work, and in the most recent case, risked serious personal injury. In those instances, the individual disconnecting the system did not ask the following three questions before proceeding:

  1. Do I understand why this component or system is installed?
  2. Does the owning trade know that I am disturbing this component/system?
  3. Is this system de-energized, depressurized and drained?

Typically, temporary systems and components are tagged for identification, but some may not be tagged at all depending on the nature of the temporary system. Whether the temporary system has a tag or not, unless you can answer the three questions above, you should not operate, modify or remove the component. Some examples of these types of tags include STO Temporary System Tag (Orange), STO Test Control Tag (Yellow) and NTO Nuclear Support Identity Tag (Blue). Each tag provides a point of contact for the owner of the service. If a tag is not present, contact the cognizant area supervisor for assistance.

We build the most complex machines the world has ever seen. We must respect our temporary systems as much as our ships’ permanently installed systems. When we are operating or handling systems or components, we need to be vigilant, perform our JHA, and ask ourselves the ‘Three Questions.’

 

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