Wondering how to implement a Pipeline Safety Management System? We have developed the following 4-stage process to guide you through the necessary stages and steps to effectively implement your Pipeline Safety Management System. To learn more about Pipeline SMS, visit this page.
Ensure that you implement your Pipeline SMS in the most efficient way, meet the requirements of API RP 1173, and avoid the common implementation pitfalls that can lead to failure.
Every organization has different goals that need to be clearly defined right from the beginning and built into every stage of the implementation process.
Without clearly defined goals and organizational needs, you run the risk of implementing a system that does not adequately address operational risks, support compliance or improve safety culture. You could put a lot of effort and resources into something that just doesn't work for you.
Define your goals up front and provide the focus needed to implement a Pipeline Safety Management System that works for you.
Leaders need confidence that the Pipeline SMS will achieve the desired results. With a robust plan, Leaders will allocate the required budget and commit to the long term from the beginning.
Leaders get hesitant when they are unsure what is being proposed and whether the schedule and budget can be met, causing a lack of confidence in the project.
Provide a structured implementation process from the beginning and secure strong Leadership commitment and budget early.
Every successful Management System requires full employee engagement and collaboration. This is the only way to embed a new way of working into your organization and achieve improvements in safety culture and performance.
Without a structured implementation process you will not achieve the level of involvement needed to be successful, you will demotivate your employees and waste valuable effort that will have a negative impact on operations.
Design employee engagement and collaboration activities into the implementation process from the beginning and ensure they will be efficient and effective.
You must identify the necessary activities and processes for implementing Plan-Do-Check-Act right from the beginning and build them into the implementation plan.
Standards like API RP 1173 emphasize the importance of Plan-Do-Check-Act but don't tell you how to do it. Following our implementation process will ensure you build an effective management system which includes all aspects of PDCA.
Know from the beginning that you will have a fully functioning Management System and Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle that will drive improvement and achieve your goals.
Using a proven implementation process allows you to accurately estimate the schedule and budget required to successfully implement your Pipeline SMS.
Management Systems are complex to implement because they interact with many different people and processes across the company. Without a structured approach you risk duplicating effort and causing rework as you find out more and more about what's needed.
Commit to our implementation process, enable accurate budgeting and scheduling, and give Leaders the confidence the Pipeline SMS will be implemented on time and on budget!
Leaders need to agree on a vision and benefits for the Pipeline SMS and have an effective plan for its design and implementation.
Leaders need to have a common understanding of the current state and gaps, and high priority improvements are identified and assigned for immediate action
Key Leaders agree on an initial actionable plan for Pipeline SMS awareness, initial gap assessment, design, and implementation.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5. Leadership and Management Commitment
5.1 General
5.2 Goals and Objectives
5.3 Planning
Leaders need to understand the project, ask questions, agree on the approach, and be able to communicate back to their teams.
Consistent messaging from leaders to employees is critical to building and sustaining momentum, as it will have a positive impact on employee engagement with Management System activities.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5. Leadership and Management Commitment
5.4 Responsibilities of Leadership
5.6 Making Communication, Risk Reduction, and Continuous Improvement Routine
The design of the Pipeline Safety Management System needs to consider your existing systems and programs to minimize change where possible.
This approach allows you to target necessary and high priority improvements to make sure your implementation resources are not wasted. Octane is used to ensure the assessment is conducted with maximum collaboration and to guarantee your data will be captured and managed securely.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5.4 Responsibilities of Leadership
10.2 Safety Assurance – Audit and Evaluation
All other API RP 1173 Elements assessed
The initial gap assessment will identify high priority improvements that need to be actioned immediately and can be worked on in parallel with the rest of the management system implementation. It is important to enable improvements where operational risks exist so they can be addressed in a timely manner.
The rest of the gap assessment results will be used to update and prioritize the management system implementation plan.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
11.2 Continuous Improvement
All other API RP 1173 Elements reviewed for high priority improvements
The goals and desired future-state are agreed by leaders and key managers, including external requirements that need to be met, the fit-for-purpose Management System design approach, alignment with current organizational and governance structures.
Identifying external requirements that need to be met in addition to API RP 1173 helps clarify scope and priorities that need to be covered in the Management System.
Once these requirements are mapped, you will be able to show PSMS Gap Assessment results against external requirements which shows the extra value of your PSMS and significantly reduces audit effort.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5.3 (b) Planning - Regulatory Requirements
14.3 Documentation and Record Keeping – PSMS Documents
Defining Management System responsibilities and accountabilities ensures people know their roles in implementation. Leaders and employees unclear on their roles may put the implementation at risk of failure.
This approach ensures roles are clearly defined, and changes required from leaders and employees are understood and agreed to for an effective implementation.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5.3 Planning
5.4 Responsibilities of Leadership
5.5 Responsibility, Accountability, and Authority
The many inputs being addressed by a Management System can lead to a complicated design that is difficult to implement. This approach ensures that complex inputs are aligned in a simple, easy to understand manual and processes that can be efficiently implemented.
Without leadership buy-in, the Management System will not get implemented. These design reviews are critical in building ownership and gaining leaders’ trust and involvement.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5.2 Goals and Objectives
5.3 Planning
5.6 Making Communication, Risk Reduction, and Continuous Improvement Routine
14.3 Documentation and Record Keeping – PSMS Documents
All other API RP 1173 Elements are incorporated into the design
Leaders and key managers champion Management System implementation across the organization through a series of implementation activities including employee communications, training and operational gap assessments.
This ensures collaboration and buy-in with employees and enables Leaders to assess the level of maturity across all operations and identify additional gaps to aid prioritizing improvements.
The Management System will now be implemented with participation from many employees through a series of activities. It is critical that they are properly planned, resourced and scheduled to gain the trust and confidence of leaders and the organization.
At this stage employees are still "waiting for it to go away." Up front and effective planning eliminates this problem and enables implementation to proceed.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5.3 Leadership and Management Commitment – Planning
Targeted communication for specific employees and groups ensures they know what to expect during implementation, and gain confidence they will be effectively supported for a successful Management System implementation.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
6.2 Stakeholder Engagement – Internal
The Management System drives improvement activities that require many small efforts from employees throughout your organization. Only with adequate knowledge can employees fulfill their roles and responsibilities and understand how their existing activities align with the Management System.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5.4 Responsibilities of Leadership
6.2 Stakeholder Engagement – Internal
13 Competence, Awareness and Training
Operational Gap Assessments that are facilitated in a consistent, methodical manner ensure relevant and high priority information is captured so action plans and improvements can address the current state across the organization.
Through periodic Operational Gap Assessments, Leaders will receive objective information about their operations and up-to-date gaps, and clearly understand and measure performance improvement being made over time.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5.6 Making Communication, Risk Reduction, and Continuous Improvement Routine
6.2 Stakeholder Engagement – Internal
10.2 Safety Assurance – Audit and Evaluation
10.3 Safety Assurance – Reporting and Feedback System
All other API RP 1173 Elements are assessed
Leaders and key managers must now execute on improvements, increase maturity and fully embed the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle.
Leaders and employees now plan and prioritize actions for the following year and embed them into business plans and budgets, including the development of appropriate indicators to measure performance.
The first Management Review is conducted and Annual Planning is initiated. The Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle is now fully implemented and operational!
Following Operational Gap Assessments, a very common problem is to leave each gap to be addressed by the identifying group - this can cause significant amounts of duplication and effort.
In most cases, common gaps are identified across the organization, which need to be addressed as one action, by one group - which is significantly more efficient.
This Action Planning and Prioritization step fulfills this requirement by grouping gaps into actions that can be prioritized and managed by Leaders. This brings much needed visibility for setting project budgets, and understanding the organizational impacts and benefits of undertaking the actions.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5.3 Leadership and Management Commitment – Planning
10.4 Safety Assurance – Performance Measurement and Analysis of Data
11.2 Continuous Improvement
All API RP 1173 Elements are prioritized for improvement
Monitoring and reporting on implementation progress is the most important priority for new Management Systems, to confirm momentum and give Leaders confidence.
Typically, numerous processes are being built or improved to cover high risk gaps. As part of those projects, KPIs and metrics can be developed to track business performance to ensure the desired results are being achieved.
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
10.4 Safety Assurance – Performance Measurement and Analysis of Data
11.2 Continuous Improvement
All API RP 1173 Elements are monitored for progress
At least annually, aligned with your business planning cycle, a Management Review allows you to take a step back and ask: "is our Management System doing what we need?". Year over year it can get stale or add unnecessary red tape if left unchecked, so this is leadership's opportunity to assess and adjust it to stay aligned with business priorities.
Annual Planning follows Management Review, embedding recommendations made into business plans and budgets as well as the formal budgeting of improvement actions identified during prioritization.
The Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle is now fully implemented and operational in your organization!
API RP 1173 requirements being met:
5. Leadership and Management Commitment
11.1 Management Review
11.2 Continuous Improvement
11.3 Top Management Review
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