Overview

Over the course of my career, I have investigated a number of accidents, most notably Piper Alpha, for which I was a member of the Public Inquiry under Lord Cullen, and also Umm Said, Ocean Odyssey, Longford, P36 Roncador and several others. In this talk, I will mention some key features of those other accidents and will then concentrate on Piper, in which 167 men tragically died. Specifically, I will look at what went wrong on Piper, why it had such disastrous consequences and what lessons can (still) be learned."

Presenter

Professor Stephen Richardson, IChemE President

Stephen Richardson was an undergraduate in chemical engineering at Imperial College from 1969 to 1972, and a postgraduate there from 1972 to 1975. He was then a Research Assistant at Cambridge and was appointed as a Lecturer in Chemical Engineering back at Imperial College in 1978, and then promoted via Senior Lecturer and Reader to Professor in 1994.

He was Head of Department from 2001 to 2008, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering from 2008 to 2010, Deputy Rector from 2009 to 2013 and Associate Provost from 2013 to his retirement in 2015. In 1996, he was made a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, and in 2015 was made a CBE for his work on chemical engineering education and safety. He is currently President of the Institution of Chemical Engineers.

The material presented in this webinar has not been peer-reviewed.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

Format

A one-hour online session: 40 minutes' presentation + 20 minutes' Q&A.

Intended audience

Anyone interested in Process Safety or those considering a career in Process Safety. The lessons learnt should be applicable to any industry.

Webinar archive

This webinar is free of charge and open to all to attend, but if you wish to access the slides and a recording to replay on demand then you'll need to be a member of the South West Members Group.