Question

Use the Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS) to investigate and analyze an accident in an oil industry with using the HFACS Taxonomy

Answer 1

The Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS) was researched by Dr. Doug Wiegmanna and Scott Shappell. It is a broad human error framework that was built for the aviation industry in the USA. The HFACS framework offers a tool to help in the investigation method and target education and prevention efforts. The goal of HFACS isn't to characteristic blame; it's far to recognize the underlying causal elements that lead to an accident. There are lots of catastrophic accidents seen in the oil and gas industries. Most of them are happened due to manpower operational error and organizational factors.we will try to investigate and analyze an incident in the oil sector using HFACS taxonomy.

The Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS) describe human error at four levels. These levels are unsafe acts of errors, preconditions for unsafe acts, Unsafe operational Supervision, and Organizational Influences. Normal categories have been evolved that discover the lively and latent screw-ups that occur. In theory, at least one failure will arise at every level main to an adverse event. If at any time leading as much as the adverse occasion, one of the failures is corrected, the adverse event will be prevented. The HFACS  category of person and team potential represents the physical, psychological and intellectual capacities of employees. With recognize to the original HFACS, this class covers the operators’ situations in addition to the education and certification requirements of the team. The oil and gas industry people and groups with each technical and interpersonal competencies to ensure that groups function effectively for secure operations.

The dearth of proper supervision and support system was common in almost all accidents of the oil industry. Publically available U.S. refinery accident reports were coded based on the original 19 categories of HFACS and the 26 available categories of HFACS-OGI, as denoted in Figure 1. The coding identified the vital parameters in each HFACS and HFACS-OGI category that is the reason for these accidents. Each report was properly read before the coding for HFACS in the oil industry.

Although an accident is caused by a combination of many factors, each unsafe act got from the accident report coded distinctly, considering all the subcategories of HFACS in the Oil Industry. Vital factors associated with 45% of the accidents in industry standards (HFACS-OI level 5), change management (HFACS- OI level 4), contractor infrastructure (HFACS-OI level 2), and decision errors (HFACS -OI level 1) with an occurrence of 5. The common parameters pointed out in the change management category were the failure to conduct efficient management of change. The common factors recognized in the HFACS-OGI countrywide regulatory framework category were disasters in administrative responsibilities including inspections and the enforcement of regulations, further to inadequate regulatory standards.