{"id":63455,"date":"2024-11-27T12:04:09","date_gmt":"2024-11-27T10:04:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sweco.fi\/?post_type=showroom_cpt&p=63455"},"modified":"2024-12-20T14:41:11","modified_gmt":"2024-12-20T12:41:11","slug":"sweco-renewed-its-guidelines-for-assessing-the-hazards-of-boiler-plants-on-behalf-of-tukes","status":"publish","type":"showroom_cpt","link":"https:\/\/www.sweco.fi\/en\/projects\/sweco-renewed-its-guidelines-for-assessing-the-hazards-of-boiler-plants-on-behalf-of-tukes\/","title":{"rendered":"Sweco renewed its guidelines for assessing the hazards of boiler plants on behalf of Tukes"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Sweco renewed its guidelines for assessing the hazards of boiler plants on behalf of Tukes<\/h1>\n

The guidelines for assessing the hazard of boiler plants were first completed 25 years ago. Sweco updated the guidelines on behalf of the Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency (Tukes) to meet today’s requirements and operating environment, where cyber threats, for example, are on a completely different level. The project was carried out in cooperation with Tukes, and the project was also supported by a broad-based steering group.<\/em><\/p>\n

Boiler plant hazard assessment is part of protecting critical infrastructure<\/h2>\n

The Boiler Plant Hazard Assessment Guide has been in use since 1999, so many things have changed in the operating environment and society. Tukes had identified the need for updating because there were no uniform and clear criteria for risk assessment.<\/p>\n

“Our common goal was to create uniform, clear and easy-to-follow guidelines for the hazard assessment of boiler plants, which would enable them to draw up a statutory hazard assessment document,”\u00a0 says Tuomas Raivio, <\/strong>leader of Sweco’s Critical Infrastructure Growth Area \u00a0.\u00a0The revised guide also serves the operation supervisors and inspection bodies of the plants.<\/p>\n

Raivio considers updating the guidelines important \u00a0for the protection and resilience of society’s critical infrastructure. “The stability of energy production depends partly on the safety of boiler plants.”<\/p>\n

What is meant by hazard assessment today?<\/h2>\n

An interdisciplinary team from Sweco was assembled to prepare the guide, including experts in boiler plants, safety automation, operation control and cyber security. “In addition, we benchmarked the situation in Sweden and Denmark through the Sweco Group,” Raivio says.<\/p>\n

The process began by defining what is meant by hazard assessment today and what the hazard assessment document should contain. The work utilised experiences from the chemical industry’s safety management systems and Tukes’ PROTO project, which harmonised the requirements of management systems. “It is important to take into account, for example, change management, maintenance and process risks.”<\/p>\n

In addition, changes in the operating environment and society were taken into account. “For this reason, the cyber security requirements of boiler plants and the requirements set by the European Union’s NIS2 directive are also included as new areas in the guide,” Raivio says.<\/p>\n

The process included interviews with representatives of Tukes and various stakeholders, as well as workshops, which helped identify safety challenges at boiler plants. Of particular concern are, for example, the internal business interfaces of boiler plants. “The owner, operator and maintenance operator can be different companies, which complicates the transfer of tacit knowledge and can create safety risks.”<\/p>\n

Hazard assessment guidelines revised from cover to cover<\/h2>\n

The guidelines were completed on schedule in autumn 2024, even though major changes of direction were made during the process and the perspectives of numerous different stakeholders were taken into account. “We received really good guidance and support for out-of-the-box thinking from Tukes, which made it possible to renew the guide from cover to cover instead of just updating it,” Raivio says.<\/p>\n

The ready-made guide contains content requirements for hazard assessment and concrete advice on the standardised risk assessment of boiler plants. The guidelines also cover annual reviews, for which minutes must be drawn up in the future.<\/p>\n

“The guidelines make it easier for inspection bodies to assess whether the hazard assessment document complies with the Pressure Equipment Act, the interpretation of which has so far been unclear.”<\/p>\n

The guide also provides instructions on how to assess whether a plant can be transferred to periodic operation control. “In principle, it increases the risk level of the plant, and due to remote connections, cyber security aspects, for example, must be taken into account,” Raivio emphasises.<\/p>\n

From Tukes’ point of view, the project went well, and people are satisfied with the new guidelines. “The new guidelines respond better to current safety requirements and challenges than the previous guidelines,” says Janne Kotiranta, who supervised the project at Tukes. He thinks the cooperation with Sweco was smooth. “We were pleased with how the project was taken forward during the project. Communication was effective, which helped us stay on top of the schedule and answer questions raised during the project.”<\/p>\n

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Read more!<\/h3> <\/div>\n \n
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