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Managing the risks of control room operations

Andy Brazier

What is a control room?

What is a control room?

Definition

A place where a facility or service can be monitored and controlled

The hub or command centre for decisionsCentral location where humans or computers receive data from field sensors.Commands may be transmitted back to remotely controlled equipment or field personnel

People that do the monitoring and control - not the control room.

The Brain of a system

Soft, shiny, grey-white

Multiple parts

Located in head

Value only make sense in terms of function

Brain relies on human senses

Control rooms deny operators the use of their sensesHow does this affect their capability?

System visibility

Limited possibilities for many systemsCCTV can provide some compensationEssential or nice to have?

Connection with the real world

Only outside view – Middle of desert in Oman!

Operators using their hearing

Pouring molten iron – crane driver could not hear the pops and bangs that warn of a problemGas plant operators not recognising the noise – stunt plane practicing nearby.

What do Control Room Operators do?

Control – monitor – operateNormal Situations

Communication - face to face including handoversOther communication - radio/telephoneAdministrative tasksEat mealsIssue permits-to-workTraining - themselves and others.

What do Control Room Operators do?

Emergency situationsRaise the alarmNotify emergency servicesCo-ordinate communicationKeep the logAccounting for personnelMonitor process for escalation.

Other control room users

Field operators - Supervisors Maintenance staff - Emergency responseBenefits of them using the control room

Improved communicationInvolving the control room operator – teamworkAccess to all information

Potential negativesDistractionConfusion – who is in charge?

Getting the balance right

Keeping people out

Locating them in the control room

Changes in the Control Room

New technologyMore automationLess peopleMore remoteA different job

More passiveMore lonelyMore responsibility.

The impact of modern control rooms

BenefitsRelieve people of boring, unpleasant and potentially hazardous tasksMore consistent and reliable operation

Negative outcomesOperators overloaded with alarms and dataNon-intuitive interfaces – people have to work harderA smaller ‘window’ on the systemOver reliance on technologyManagers becoming more distant from the operators.

Problems with alarms

Typical70% - Low priority90% - High priority

80% - Medium?

Operator perspective70% - High priority90% - Low priority92% - Very high

Overflow at 100%Trip at 90%10% in 15 minutes

More alarms must be better philosophy

1992 Vax system operating 6 machines – much better alarms than 2004 Windows XP system operating 3 machines

Past – every alarm had a cost Now – just a line of code

Engineers’ graphics

Using Piping and Instrumentation Drawings to design graphics – they are not drawn with that use in mind

Multiple options for emergency shutdown

Operators don’t want to have make have choices in an emergency

Other technology

Cordless phones – what happens in a power failure?

Remote access – why visit the control room? Manager can monitor on holiday

Approaches to control room design

Two contrasting views that result in poor designAll control rooms look the same – little to be considered in designControl rooms required specialist designers – leave them to get on with it with minimal input from others

Uncontrolled modificationsDifferent approaches used

Re-instrumentation – run by instrument engineersProcess improvement – run by operationsOrganisational – run by business managers

Balanced approach to end user involvement

Important (essential) – but requires some careChoice of furniture – how it looksLarger large display – without identifying a needControl graphics – same as existing

Manage expectationsResistance to change is inevitable‘User centred not ‘user led.’

Plausible on paper

Console desk only 500mm wide – typical 1000mm

New into old

Leg space!

25Lone operator

Human capabilities

AbilitiesLimitationsStill on Version 1

Hazards for control room staff

Normal workplace (similar to an office)Slips, trips and fallsElectricityFire

Nature of the jobLack of physical activityMental exertion

External eventsFire, explosions, toxic releaseTerrorism.

Hazards to others

Operating errors – doing things wrongFailure to detect, diagnose and respond to abnormal eventsConsequences can be devastatingNot addressed by ‘normal’ risk assessments or evaluations focussed purely on control room arrangements.

Nature of the Control Room Job

Features that make a job satisfying

The Modern CRO

Skill variety Lots of monitoring, not much action

Task significance Lots of automation - CRO responds when things go wrong

Task identity CRO responsible for large number of plants/systems

Autonomy Minimal - working to very tight specifications

Task feedback Aim is to avoid upsets and incidents

Common themesToo many distractions in control rooms

Nuisance alarmsVisitors, contractors, day staff

Fatigue because it is difficult for control room operators to get quality breaksLess face-to-face communication within teams

Unreliable radios

Procedures unsuitable for new ways of workingOver reliance on informal trainingInadequate refresher trainingReducing levels of supervision.

Conclusions

A control room is only a component in a systemA tool for people to operate the system

A new/upgraded control room is a major changeUsually multiple driversCan fundamentally change the way people work

End user involvement is essential, but only as part of a ‘user centred’ approachDo not assume that using the latest technology and applying the latest standards will guarantee a successful control room