Overview

Creeping change – these are changes in process conditions or external conditions that take place slowly over an extended time period. This change can be undetected until an incident occurs or a plant becomes inoperable. This talk is an overview of creeping change types, risks and detection, drawing on real-life examples. Case-studies include the San Bruno Gas Pipeline Explosion in the US as well as three cases from the presenter's career: an offshore NGL leak, an onshore fractionation train upset and a wellhead platform that became inoperable overnight. Detection techniques for creeping change will be discussed in the webinar.

The presentation is a revised and updated version of one given to the Gulf Coast Member Group in Houston in 2022.

Speaker

Ian Robertson, Senior Project Manager, Costain

Ian is a Chartered Chemical Engineer with over 35 years of industrial experience. The first seven years of his career was in the UK chemical industry before moving to Aberdeen where he spent 14 years working in offshore oil and gas. In 2010, he moved to Houston, where he managed process engineering departments at two separate engineering consultancies. Ian returned to the UK in 2024 and is currently senior project manager at Costain where he specialises in leading multi-discipline front end development studies.

The material presented has not been peer-reviewed. Any opinions are the presenter’s own and do not necessarily represent those of IChemE or the North Scotland Member Group. The information is given in good faith but without any liability on the part of IChemE.

Software

The presentation will be delivered via Microsoft Teams. We recommend downloading the app from the Microsoft website, rather than using the web portal.