Introduction
The establishment of a plant for industrial production is done with risk control programs incorporated to achieve security and create an assurance to the users that its usage is risk-free and proper controls are available that protect users (Smith, p. 27). The assurance is spread over the lifetime of the plant to ensure a compact system that critically identifies any risks and uncertainties.
Discussion
Design is the most important component of planning for the construction of a plant. The establishment of a plant with the assurance it will cause none or minimal risks to its users and the environment around highly depends on the extent and circumstances that its design is subjected to (Smith, p. 31). The establishment of the plant requires the engineers to familiarize themselves with the design of the plant. The majority of accidents and risks that are faced in a plant can be traced back to the type of design that was incorporated during construction. Apart from guaranteeing safety, design is done to increase the yield while still integrating performance with the other components of the plant.
Consistency during design ensures that standards are adhered to from inception until the commissioning of the plant (Smith, pp. 46-7). To reduce circumstances where the plant causes harmful discharges that may endanger the life and existence of components in its external environment, the design ensures the early detection of such negativities which are then removed by proper and up-to-date design. Application of structured criteria is adopted that identifies the potential risks surrounding the introduction of the plant (Smith, p. 56).
The construction of a plant is a pre-planned process. A complete feasibility study is done before the construction which makes the actual construction simpler and efficient. Construction to a large extent involves a process of project management (Smith, p. 71). Due to the high level of mechanization that is involved in construction, a critical analysis of the current developments of construction technology is highly done to achieve assurance. The current innovations are adopted with the performance, security, and yield of the plant in mind.
Current construction techniques have been highly developed due to the importance of the construction industry in the establishment of plants (Smith, p. 90). The selections of the site, machinery usage, labor planning, and engineering duties are well planned to ensure assurance in the delivery of service after the establishment of the plant. Compliance with state and federal laws on risk criteria that protect the plant workers and construction engineers ensures future safety in usage. Legislation prevents industrial accidents and limits their consequences to people and the environment (Smith, pp. 94-5).
Commissioning of the plant allows review before the start-up process is initiated. Verification of the plant and the components used in construction allows the assessment of the integrity of the plant in the production of the end product and safety concerns in usage. The validation of the functions incorporated by the plant, review of the cost involved in construction, the removal, and detection of errors that may cause damages and breakdown of the system leads to the adoption of the ideal system that achieves production in performance and safety of workers (Smith, p. 107). Due to the risk of the model in conformity as well as machine, software, and human errors, the use of checklists is adopted. These lists will review every aspect of the plant to preserve the integrity and safety of the plant. The review of each sub-system leads to alignment to the part of the plant that leads to an objective increase in production, safety, and achievement of financial goals of the company (Smith, p. 144).
The conversion of all raw materials into viable outputs for sale and usage encompasses operations. Operations are a complex step for all plants since they involve the consolidation of different factors to produce a common product (Smith, p. 163). However, the plant is primarily responsible for the conversion of inputs to outputs that possess the assurance that their usage will achieve maximum performance. Since operations are responsible for ensuring that the industrial processes undertaken by the plant are efficient in terms of safety and control, systems are established in this stage that develops safer stages of processing (Smith, p. 171). The development of control features of the plant during operations reduces mishaps and improves the reliability of the plant over a longer production period.
The occurrence of risks and accidents in a plant greatly affects the production goals and safety of every worker. Decommissioning of plants follows a systematic methodology that is well planned and done to create minimum haphazard effects to the environment, the personnel, and the plant (Smith, p. 207). Demolition of the plant and the adjacent buildings helps in reducing the dangers, hazards, and losses. The necessity to reduce liabilities and conformity to state and federal laws ensures that decommissioning is critically done to achieve assurance that the possibility of risks is minimal (Smith, p. 221). Decommissioning strategies allow pre-planned site clearance to be done that reduces the risk subjected to the plant engineers and other subordinate workers. Plant closure that affects the environment is only done after proper controls are put in place that reduces environmental contamination of the air, land, or water sources (Smith, p. 284). The process of decommissioning reduces the waste capacities of the plant by ensuring a complete overhaul of any work in progress is done to minimize financial risks to the firm. Old plants that have become obsolete in their usage are decommissioned to ensure their ineffectiveness does not cause risky concerns (Smith, p. 297).
Conclusion
The lifetime of the plant is characterized by uncertain occurrences that may cause risks. Major accidents that lead to loss of life, injury, spillage, accidental plant breakdown, and destructive furnaces assert the importance of a critical risk control system (Smith, p. 299). Risk assessment coupled with pre-planned analysis of uncertainties ensures that plants possess an assurance that the process of industrial production achieves safety with a proper critical control system that assures the users of the plant (Smith, p. 301).
Works Cited
Smith, David. Reliability, maintainability and risk: practical methods for engineers. Massachusetts, MA: Butterworth-Heinemann. 2005. Pp 25 – 301