SIL Determination

Since the Buncefield incident in December 2005 the HSE has put an increasing focus on the quality and rigour shown in SIL determination studies, which are used to ensure critical trip systems are reliable enough to protect against high severity events. At OTECSA we understand that that SIL determination can be daunting for clients and it requires specialised methods and expert practitioners not often held within engineering teams.

OTECSA can help you understand and comply with the HSE demands for functional safety compliance (IEC 61511 and IEC 61508) by helping you in a number of ways, depending on your needs. We can help you:

• Plan your process safety management procedures and processes, to ensure you are clear on the route to compliance and ongoing management

• Help you define hazardous scenarios and quantify the severity of events (e.g through Hazard Studies)

• Determine the reliability requirements of your critical trip systems using risk graphs or LOPA (layers of protection analysis)

• Follow through with assistance in carrying out any Functional Safety design requirements, through our network of contacts in industry

We are trained in the main SIL determination methods such as risk graphs, LOPA and fault tree analysis and have carried out multiple broad ranging SIL studies for clients, often following on naturally from facilitating hazard studies (HAZOP). Our links to qualified and experienced functional safety engineers and design organisations means you could be on the journey to functional safety compliance in a few easy steps. Let us take the headache out of SIL for you, get in touch today.