Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
instructions. should. be. prepared. in. a. second. language. understood. by. those. work-
ers..In.addition,.operating.procedures.should.be.changed.when.there.is.a.change.in.
the.process.as.a.result.of.management.decision.or.procedural.changes..The.conse-
quences.of.operating.procedure.changes.must.be.fully.evaluated.and.communicated.
to. personnel.. For. example,. mechanical. changes. to. a. process. made. by. the. mainte-
nance.department.(e.g., changing.a.valve.from.steel.to.brass.or.other.subtle.changes).
should.be.evaluated.to.determine.if.operating.procedures.and.practices.should.also.
be.changed.
All. management. changes. and. actions. must. be. coordinated. and. integrated. with.
current. operating. procedures,. and. operating. personnel. must. be. oriented. to. the.
changes.in.procedures.before.the.changes.are.made..When.the.process.is.shut.down.
in. order. to. make. the. changes,. the. operating. procedures. must. be. updated. before.
start-up.of.the.process.
Training.in.how.to.handle.upset.conditions.must.be.accomplished.as.well.as.what.
operating. personnel. are. to. do. in. emergencies. (such. as. when. a. pump. seal. fails. or.
a. pipeline. ruptures).. Communication. must. also. be. maintained. between. operating.
.personnel. and. workers. performing. work. within. the. operating. or. production. area,.
especially.with.nonroutine.tasks..Hazards.of.the.task.must.be.conveyed.to.both.oper-
ating.personnel.(e.g.,.supervisors),.in.accordance.with.established.procedures,.and.to.
those.workers.performing.the.actual.tasks.
summAry
An. SOP. (Standard. or. Safe. Operating. Procedure). is. a. document. that. describes. the.
regularly.recurring.operation.relevant.to.quality.and.safe.performance..The.purpose.
of.the.SOP.is.to.carry.out.the.operations.correctly.and.always.in.the.same.manner..
An.SOP.should.be.available.at.the.place.where.the.work.is.performed.
SOPs.are.organizational.tools.that.provide.a.foundation.for.training.new.employ-
ees,.for.refreshing.the.memories.of.management.and.experienced.employees,.and.for.
ensuring.that.important.procedures.are.carried.out.in.a.standard,.speciied.manner..
The. principal. function. of. an. SOP. is. to. provide. detailed,. step-by-step. guidance. to.
employees.who.are.required.to.carry.out.a.certain.procedure..In.this.instance,.the.
SOP.serves.not.only.as.a.training.aid,.but.also.as.a.means.of.helping.to.ensure.that.
the.procedure.is.carried.out.in.a.standard,.approved.manner.
Another.important.function.of.the.SOP.is.to.keep.management.informed.about.
the.way.functions.are.performed.in.areas.under.their.supervision..A.complete.ile.
of. well-written,. up-to-date. SOPs. is. an. indication. of. good. management. and. pro-
vides. management. with. instant. access. to. information. on. functional. details. of. the.
organization. for. which. they. are. responsible.. This. is. of. enormous. beneit. during.
inspections.and.management.reviews,.to.say.nothing.of.providing.timely.answers.to.
.unanticipated.questions.from.superiors.
An. SOP. is. a. compulsory. instruction.. If. deviations. from. this. instruction. are.
allowed,. the. conditions. for. these. should. be. documented,. including. who. can. give.
permission.for.this.and.what.exactly.the.complete.procedure.will.be..The.original.
should.be.kept.in.a.secure.place,.while.working.copies.should.be.authenticated.with.
stamps.or.signatures.of.authorized.persons.
