The principles of managing change for process safety through a stage gate risk assessment process are well understood. The challenge to the business lies not in the technical aspects of the process but in the basic administration of the process.
Most organisations have their own variations of the process but for those looking to improve or develop processes we would recommend the Guidelines for the Management of Change for Process Safety
published by the Center for Chemical Process Safety of the AIChE. Key messages from this guide incude :
Defining Roles and Responsibilities
Defining Scope
Requirements for review and authorisation
Evaluating Hazards
Tracking Temporary Changes
Allowing Emergency Changes
The Management of Change application addresses these issues while also providing a very efficient and controllable process.