THE REVISED 3rd EDITION OF THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRIES ASSOCIATION 'GUIDANCE FOR THE LOCATION AND DESIGN OF OCCUPIED BUILDINGS ON CHEMICAL MANUFACTURING SITES

摘要

The publication of the third edition of the CIA's "Guidance for the location and design of occupied buildings on chemical manufacturing sites" marked a significant revision of the previous version. The revision was produced by a working group drawn from experts in the field and representatives of the UK Chemical and Oil Industries, and continues the British chemical industries leadership in this area.Although some sections of the previous edition - for example those dealing with toxic gas releases - remain largely unchanged, other sections have been significantly revised from previous versions. For the first time, the revised guidance sets out the principles against which companies should judge their occupied buildings policies - and performance - and has a new section on managing occupied buildings, helping to ensure that standards are maintained throughout the working life of a building. The issue of occupancy - when does a building become occupied? - has been discussed in much greater detail and now has a section devoted to the issue. The section dealing with approaches to assessment, either hazard based or risk based, has been re-written and (hopefully) clarified. The way the "10~(-4) rule" should be interpreted has been significantly clarified and the use of exceedance curves has been highlighted as a way to ensure that significant events with a frequency just below 10~(-4) are not excluded from consideration. The use of Individual Risk and Aggregate Risk is discussed - the first to determine when action is required and the second to determine priority and "how much is enough?" The guidance also now includes an example of a site's approach to occupied building risk assessment, which - whilst not an "approved template" - should assist companies and their advisors in knowing what an acceptable assessment should cover.The paper discusses these changes to the guidance and some of the discussions which led to their adoption. It also considers how companies should now approach assessment of both new and existing buildings, and what changes may need to be made to existing assessments as companies revise them over the next few years.