Page 147 - Dust Explosions in the Process Industries

120 Dust Explosions in the Process Industries

In general terms, meaninel communication may be defined as the conveyance and
proper receipt and appreciation of adequate information whenever required. However,
to receive, appreciate, and use the information in a proper way, one must have

Adequate knowledge.
Adequate motivation.
Adequate resources and deciding power.
Knowledge about dust explosionscan be acquired by reading, listening to lectures,talk-
ing to experts, and the like, although experience from actual explosion prevention and
mitigation work is perhaps the best form of knowledge.
Genuine motivation is more difficult to achieve. It seems to be a law of life that people
who experienced serious explosion accidents possess the highest level of motivation, in
particular if the accident caused injuries and perhaps even loss of life. This applies to
workers as well as top management. However, high levels of motivation can also result
from good demonstrationsof real explosions,including their initiation by various igni-
tion sources, as well as their propagation and damaging effects. Video and film can help,
if used properly.
The find element, adequateresources and the authority to put the good plans into prac-
tice, is in reality controlled by the top management. Verhaegen (1989) concluded from
this that the real responsibility for establishing and running a proper safety assurance
system always lies on the top management. Summarizing the experience of a large,
multinational chemical company, Verhaegen suggested that the following 10 essential
elements be involved to ensure proper safety management:

Top management responsibility.
Safety statement (explicit commitment from top management).
Objectives and goals (specification of long- and short-term expectations).
Stated standards (written guidelines and rules).
Safety committees (a dedicated organization for handling safety issues at a1
levels).
Safety audits (regular reexamination of work practices).
Accident records (writtenanalyses of accidents: Why did they happen? How can sim
ilar accidents be prevented?).
Safety personnel (qualified specialists are essential as advisers, but responsibility
remains with top management).
Motivation (by information and involvement and so on).
Training (a continual process, courses are essential, the message must get
through!).
Verhaegen emphasized the problem that a good safety organization is in reality often
kept active by one or two dedicated individuals.If they change position within the com-
pany, or even leave, the safety organization may suffer.Management should foreseethis
problem and provide a workable solution.
Burkhardt (1989) gave an informative,more theoretical psychological analysis of the
role of human factors in accident prevention in general. Atkinson (1988) and Proctor
(1988) discussed various aspects of the training of safety personnel.