Industries
Chemical

Hazardous materials in chemical plants can lead to serious health and safety hazards when not handled properly, so MISTRAS provides inspection and process safety management (PSM) consulting services to ensure personnel and environmental safety.

Chemical plant facilities and assets are bound to extremely strict operating standards due to the potentially catastrophic results that equipment failure can cause. It is essential that not only are these assets inspected and maintained regularly, but that the plant was designed and constructed safely, and that management personnel operate with meticulous process safety management (PSM) procedures.

Process Safety Management (PSM) Consulting Services for Chemical Plants

MISTRAS’ expert engineers work with our clients in the chemical industry to develop comprehensive PSM programs that prevent or minimize the hazards of operating with toxic, flammable, explosive, or hazardous chemicals.

PSM standards may differ across multiple regulatory bodies, but certain common elements are typically present. MISTRAS helps our clients implement PSM programs that contain:

• Written programs, plans, and procedures to implement the regulation and each of its parts (e.g., operating procedures, emergency planning, etc.)
• Detailed information about the chemicals, technology, and equipment being used in a regulated process
• Hazards analysis of each regulated process
• Documented training of the workforce, both employees and contractor personnel
• Procedures for pre-startup safety reviews, mechanical integrity, non-routine work authorizations, change management, incident investigation, and compliance audits

Chemical plants must also document that onsite equipment and PSM programs are in alignment with Recognized and Generally Accepted Good Engineering Practices (RAGAGEP). MISTRAS’ process safety engineering experts have decades of experience in helping our clients design, implement, and maintain PSM programs with industry best practices.

Integrity Operating Windows (IOWs)

Integrity Operating Windows (IOWs) establish acceptable limits of process variations before an asset begins to incur damage.

The purpose of defining an IOW is to establish, implement, and maintain a program to identify any potential damage mechanisms that may adversely affect the process, and then use that information to create a system where parameters can be modified as processes evolve over time. The ultimate goal of IOWs is to lower the risk of operating plant process equipment.

IOWs are most effective when utilized as part of MISTRAS’ comprehensive PSM programs, and in combination with MISTRAS’ industry-leading inspection data management software, PCMS.

Both IOWs and PSM programs require multiple detailed steps and lots of meticulous data focused on identifying, documenting, and training personnel in potential hazards and process changes.

PCMS’ comprehensive storage, organization, and analysis capabilities helps to ensure that IOW program data is centrally located and consistently updated. This data includes:

• Inspection and Corrosion Data
• Mechanical Integrity Data
• Management-of-Change (MoC) Activities
• Risk-Based Inspection (RBI) Calculations

Other Chemical Plant Engineering Consulting Services

• Asset Integrity Management Services (AIMS) Programs
• Mechanical Integrity (MI) Audits
• Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII) Programs
• Reliability & Maintenance Engineering Services

Chemical Plant Inspection & Maintenance Services

MISTRAS also provides high-quality traditional and advanced non-destructive testing (NDT) inspection services for in-service chemical plant fixed and rotating equipment assets, including:

• Heat Exchangers
• Piping
• Pressure Vessels
• Pumps
• Storage Tanks
• Valves

With a wide range of available NDT inspection techniques, we select and apply the most effective technique for your individual asset.

We also perform mechanical services to prepare assets for inspection and to return them to working condition. These services include:

• Corrosion Assessment and Mitigation Services
• Electrical Services
• Industrial Cleaning Services
• Insulation Services