Are you feeling helpless knowing that you have work piling up in your inbox, but you can’t get started because you are working from home? Adley Services recognizes this challenge and offers a solution to continue to meet the OSHA and EPA requirements of process safety and risk management – Remote PHA during COVID-19.
When you get back into the office, scheduling time for a team to meet for your required Process Hazards Analysis (PHA) will be harder than ever before. Call us today to begin setting up your Remote PHA.
Adley Services recognizes that we are all modifying our work schedules to meet CDC guidelines (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/guidance-business-response.html) of:
- Implementing flexible worksites (e.g., telework)
- Implementing flexible work hours (e.g., staggered shifts)
- Implementing flexible meeting and travel options (e.g., postpone non-essential meetings or events)
- Allowing flexible worksites, telecommuting and flexible work hours to increase physical distance among employees
- Using other methods of minimizing exposure between employees, and between employees and the public
Remote PHA is not a new concept. Adley Services has been conducting Remote PHAs for years in multiple industries across the US. It has worked great in instances where engineering is located at headquarters or a central location instead of at each remote facility. Or, we have used Remote PHA, when engineering and operations are together, but an excellent facilitator cannot be found locally. And now, we can utilize Remote PHA during times of social distancing. Some of the benefits Remote PHA offers are:
- No travel costs: It’s just that simple.
- Flexible schedule but the same “in meeting” time: Instead of cramming a PHA into a single, long meeting (due to travel schedules), we can meet for a few hours a day with flexible hours. Personnel will be able to continue regular duties or address emergencies as they arise when no backup is available.
- Expertise where needed: Great facilitators can conduct a remote PHA and an in-person PHA with the same success. We train our engineers (who are also facilitators) to be the best at either option.
- Complies with CDC guidelines on social distancing
How does Remote PHA work?
Remote PHA works just like an in-person PHA, except the team is not in the same room.
- The participants log in on their computer and call into the conference bridge.
- The facilitator runs the PHA as if the team was in the same conference room.
- The team identifies hazards and where risk reduction is needed.
Adley prepares for the Remote PHA during COVID-19 as we do for all PHAs. Preparation is one of our specialties. You can be sure that the PHA will run efficiently from start to finish. We start a PHA with as much information as possible gathered and prepared to keep the PHA moving. For Remote PHAs, we conduct a short test run of the video conferencing setup and equipment with team members to ensure we are off to a running start on Day 1. All team members will also receive all pertinent information about the PHA before the kickoff meeting, which ensures that we are all using the same information and that it is easily accessible.
At kickoff, each participant joins the WebEx video conference. We will have a video of each participant, where available, and the ability to share our screens. We go through an introduction of expectations of the facilitator and each team member. We will also provide an explanation of how the PHA will evolve. Much like an in-person PHA, our trained facilitator will ensure the entire team is looking at the same place on the drawings, understands what process equipment we are focusing on, and collaborates to identify hazards in the system. Each team member will need to contribute as if we were sitting across the table from each other. And don’t worry, we take regular breaks during the day and have backup systems in place for digital communication failure (i.e., slow internet limiting screen sharing).
Know that a Remote PHA will take the same amount of “in meeting” time as an in-person PHA. For example, if your process is simple and only requires a few hours in-person, the Remote PHA will also only take a few hours. Or, if your process is complex and requires two weeks, the Remote PHA will also take two weeks. The difference is the FLEXIBILITY – my favorite benefit of Remote PHA. Adley Services can facilitate Remote PHAs at any time, for any length. We can split the work into a few hours each day. We can quickly move times to accommodate personal schedules or work conflicts.
During times of social distancing, our daily plans are in flux. A sense of normalcy and task completion are a welcomed victory. Let Adley Services help you stay productive by facilitating your Remote PHA during COVID-19 today. Contact us to learn more.