Identification of Potential Hazards and Critical Tasks Involving High Risks and Providing Additional Control Measures

Abstract

Risks are a complex problem that, if they occur, will cause unwanted change in the cost, schedule, or technical performance of an engineering system. Hazard analysis involves the identification of hazards at a facility and evaluating possible scenarios leading to unwanted consequences. The hazard analysis stage is a very important part of the risk management process, as no action can be made to avoid, or reduce, the effects of unidentified hazards. Risk assessments are tools that are used for preparing a scientific basis to reduce the risk. The methods currently used in hazard identification and risk assessment are HAZOP, FMEA, FTA, ETA, HIRA, CTI. Following the comparative analysis of these methods a novel approach to risk assessment using expert system is proposed. Some conclusions and research perspectives will be presented in the final part of the paper.