Technical Insights

Resources & Insights

Practical process safety guidance for capital project teams — written for engineers, project managers, and PSM leads who need it right the first time.

Featured Article
"The HAZOP is where you find the hazards. The action register is where you decide what to do about them. Most projects nail the first part and fumble the second."
HAZOP & Risk Studies

Managing HAZOP Action Items Through Detailed Engineering: A Field Guide

HAZOP studies generate dozens — sometimes hundreds — of action items. Without a disciplined tracking system, critical recommendations disappear into spreadsheets and project close-out reports. Here's how to build a register that actually closes out before commissioning.

Read Article
Startup & PSSR

PSSR: What the Regulation Says vs. What Actually Matters

29 CFR 1910.119(i) gives you four requirements. Experienced practitioners know there are really twelve things that need to be right before you introduce chemicals. The gap between compliance and safety is where incidents happen.

Read Article
Construction Phase

Field Deviations During Construction: When MOC Is Required and When It Isn't

Construction crews encounter field conditions that don't match the design every day. Not all of them require Management of Change. Knowing which do — and getting the documentation right — is the difference between a clean startup and a §(l) violation.

Read Article
Commissioning

What Makes a Good Commissioning Procedure (and What Makes a Dangerous One)

Most commissioning procedures are written in a hurry. The warning signs are predictable: passive voice, missing acceptance criteria, steps that assume knowledge the technician doesn't have. Here's the anatomy of a procedure that actually guides safe first-time operation.

Read Article
FEED Phase

Why PSM Has to Start at FEED — Not Six Months Before Startup

The decisions made during FEED determine 70% of a facility's lifecycle risk profile. Layout, relief header design, control philosophy — these are orders of magnitude cheaper to change at FEED than at detailed engineering or construction. Here's what to review and when.

Read Article
Commissioning & Startup

Operator Qualification for a New Facility: Building Competency When There's No Operating History

Training operators for an existing unit is hard enough. Training them for a facility that has never run is a different challenge entirely — there are no experienced veterans to observe, no normalized routines to follow. Here's a structured approach that works.

Read Article
📁

Free Document Library — 35 Templates & Checklists

Procedure templates, PSSR evidence checklists, commissioning authorization forms, HAZOP worksheets, and more — built to OSHA PSM §1910.119 standards, ready to adapt for your project.

Browse the Library

Need more than an article?

These articles cover principles. Your project has specifics — site conditions, phase constraints, regulatory timelines, and stakeholders with different priorities. That's where we work.

Tell Us About Your Project