Technical Report | Process Safety Download Full Report The PST Gap: When Your Instruments Can’t Respond in Time A trip that activates too late — or can’t return the process to safe operation before design limits are exceeded — isn’t protection. It’s a false sense of security. Scope: Seven units across three refining facilities |…
Case StudyAlarm Rationalization for a Refinery Client: Refinery | Location: USA Cognascents is supporting a refinery with a facility-wide alarm rationalization effort aimed to improve alarm system performance, enhance operator effectiveness, and align with industry best practices. To date, the program has focused on a pilot subset of units, targeting reduction of alarm load, improvement…
Case StudyFortifying Critical PSM Program Elements for a Lithium-Ion Battery Manufacturer Client: Lithium-Ion Battery Manufacturer | Location: USA A leading EV battery manufacturer partnered with Cognascents to strengthen and harden its Process Safety Management (PSM) program. Lithium battery manufacturing involves handling flammable and reactive chemical – such as electrolyte solutions, predominantly ethyl methyl carbonate (EMC),…
Case StudyRefinery-Wide Integrity Operating Window Development Client: Refinery | Location: Oklahoma, USA Our client, a refinery operator, recognized the need to strengthen their mechanical integrity and corrosion management programs by formalizing the monitoring of key process variables that directly influence equipment degradation. Within the process units, several challenges were noted, particularly with several sour water…
Case StudyPressure Relief Device (PRD) Evaluation for Ethanol Processing Tank Project: Pressure Relief Device (PRD) Calculations Industry: Food & Beverage Location: North Carolina The Challenge A new molecular sieve surge tank and associated column system used in the production of ethanol-based specialty chemicals required evaluation to ensure adequate protection against all credible overpressure scenarios. The…
Case StudyUnderstanding & Strengthening Process Safety: A Pilot Plant Case Study in Food & Beverage Project: Pilot Plant Hazard Review Industry: Food & Beverage – Chemical Process Development Location: New York A new pilot plant was under development to convert carbon dioxide (CO₂) and hydrogen into clean fuels and specialty chemicals. The process involved high…
Case StudyCalibration of PCMS RBI Methodology for Offshore Platforms Client: Offshore Oil & Gas Operator | Location: Gulf of America A major offshore oil and gas operator was reliant on a qualitative risk-based inspection (RBI) methodology, which depended on subjective judgment and manual risk ranking. This approach led to inconsistencies in risk evaluations across similar…
Case StudyRisk-Based Inspection Implementation Client: Midstream Operator | Location: Alberta, Canada Our client sought to optimize their inspection budget while maintaining equipment integrity and regulatory compliance. Historically, they relied on time-based inspection requirements set by the Alberta Boiler Safety Association (ABSA). This approach resulted in excessive inspections, increased costs, and missed opportunities to extend intervals…
Case StudyEnhancing Refinery Safety with a Strategic Safe Operating Limits (SOL) Framework Client: Refinery The client sought to establish an SOL framework for their refinery. The goal was to establish specific operating boundaries to enhance safety, optimize operational procedures, and ensure regulatory compliance. This pilot study needed to identify SOLs that could later be scaled…
Case StudyFuture-Ready Mechanical Integrity Program: Harnessing Contextualization and 3D Visualization Client: Fertilizer Plant Our client was facing challenges with their time-based Mechanical Integrity program, which leveraged inspection methods that were failing to target critical damage mechanisms and susceptible areas. Additionally, their existing Integrity Data Management Systems (IDMS) was hindered by outdated, incomplete data and poor…
