INDUSTRY EMBRACES CULLEN REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS

The Cullen report received an all-round welcome from Britain's offshore petroleum industry.

The United Kingdom Offshore Operators Association called the report a blueprint for the future that will make a major contribution to offshore safety.

Harold Hughes, Ukooa director general, said the Cullen findings must be considered at every level in the industry. Ukooa is working through its 20 standing committees to devise the best methods of implementation.

Ukooa, Hughes said, is pleased with Cullen's recommendations for a single regulatory authority covering offshore safety and introduction of formal safety assessments to underpin regulations. Both ideas had been put to the inquiry by the organization.

Sally Rothwell, Conoco U.K. safety manager, also supported creation of a single regulatory body under control of the U.K. Health and Safety Executive.

Hughes said by the end of this year U.K. offshore operators will have spent 750 million ($1.47 billion) on safety measures since the Piper Alpha disaster.

Future spending will be heaviest in bringing accommodation units on older platforms up to required standards for safe refuges and emergency evacuation.

Major spending also could be required to update older control rooms.

Ukooa said recommendations on standby vessels could lead to use of custom-built craft.

INDUSTRY COOPERATION

Jim Petrie, Department of Energy safety director in the petroleum engineering division, has asked Ukooa to set up a joint working party with the International Association of Drilling Contractors and British Rig Operators Association to implement recommendations on harmonization of permit to work systems.

The three organizations also will prepare a joint proposal on standardization of emergency status lights and alarm systems.

Ukooa also will work with the Civil Aviation Authority to introduce a "flight following" system to determine on short notice the availability and capacity of helicopters in an emergency. Cullen said this system could be operated by an individual operator or on a North Sea wide basis.

The Offshore Contractors Council will be brought in for discussions on Cullen's recommendation that the regulatory body, operators, and contractors should support and encourage involvement of the offshore work force in safety. In particular, the Cullen report says, first line supervisors should involve their work force in everyday safety.

The Institution of Chemical Engineers said the thoroughness of the inquiry virtually turned the industry inside out.

It said the report "killed the lie that accidents cannot be prevented." Trevor Evans, the institution's secretary general, said accidents could be prevented by better design, better training, better work practices, and a commitment to safety throughout an organization.

He added that the introduction of formal safety assessments may be the most significant legacy of the Piper Alpha disaster.

Evans said the Piper Alpha experience shows the permit to work system must not be treated as a "charm" or as an excuse for not monitoring the workplace.