Gesip's expertise in crisis management applied to the safety of offshore platforms
Since 1953, Gesip has been working to improve the safety of human health and the integrity of installations and infrastructures. To this end, the organization shares its knowledge through expertise in the form of guides and specialized training programs, including training on the safety of offshore platforms. Gesip believes that crisis management is based on knowledge of events and the sharing of experiences.
Offshore platform safety training delivered by Gesip
Given that offshore platforms are marine bases, they must be able to demonstrate autonomy in order to guarantee the safety of their infrastructures and personnel. Only intellectual assistance can be provided from outside the platform, which means that everything must be planned on site to take into account the time needed to bring in emergency services and additional resources. The watchword in terms of offshore platform safety is certainly anticipation.
Therefore, the necessary means to secure the teams and infrastructures must be present on site, including in the event of a case requiring evacuation of the platform using survival boats.
In addition, the platform staff on site must be trained in crisis management. A team, present at all hours, every day, must be specially trained, whose missions are specifically focused on security.
The action of these personnel must be based on a carefully defined crisis management plan based on various established scenarios:
- human accident, multiple victims, death, etc.
- Process event: loss of containment (compressor leakage and/or fire, gas leakage, flammable leakage, toxic product leakage, slick fire at sea, etc.)
- Fire in the life base
- Boat and platform collision / helicopter crash
- Black Out
Scenarios must take into account possible complications such as missing or unavailable key personnel (doctor, crisis management team personnel etc), loss of fire defense pump, loss of response capability (strong or weak marine current, etc), extreme weather conditions, etc.
Various criteria for the escalation of the event must also be taken into consideration, on which its predictive control depends:
- an event that can be easily controlled
- an event that can worsen if not controlled
- A dreaded event, which cannot be controlled and which leads to the evacuation of the platform.
The tools and methods used to manage the crisis must be proven:
- TO (Time Out or situation point)
- Information and communication to the platform staff (Public Adress)
- Decision making and associated arguments.
To test the emergency and crisis plan on offshore sites, Gesip has set up a training course for on-site management of major emergencies. Scheduled to last 4 days, this course trains teams in the implementation of the emergency plan and emergency management tools. It allows to identify the possibilities of improvement of the emergency plan by taking into account the organizational characteristics of each offshore platform.
Companies can also complete the preparation of their teams with the GUM training Inter training. It is designed for future offshore site managers or current site managers who need a refresher course to train them to deal with an accidental event ranging from a personal accident to water or air pollution.
This course takes place over 3 days and is based on 12 role plays that allow each participant to experience all the functions of the crisis management team and thus enable them to understand the role and capabilities of all their interlocutors.
Read: Safety in the field
Offshore platform safety training in real conditions thanks to Gesip infrastructures
Safety training on offshore platforms provides the keys to the various actors in crisis management to acquire good behavioral practices for intervention and prevention. It prepares teams to intervene safely in the event of an accident. Purely theoretical and regulatory training is therefore insufficient. This is why it takes place on Gesip's technical sites.
Located in Vernon, in the Eure region, and in Roussillon, in the Isère region, they offer training under real conditions and in dynamic situations. The technical platforms are equipped with various full-scale teaching units to implement a variety of workshops in infrastructures that reproduce an industrial environment. Gesip also has a dynamic 4D simulator.
Security training programs tailored to the needs of companies
Gesip offers customized training programs to meet the security challenges specific to a company. The training programs are adapted to the sector of activity and the infrastructures involved. The organization makes its two technical platforms available to its members. However, companies can choose to train with their own facilities and equipment in order to be as close as possible to real-life conditions.
With Gesip's training courses, companies benefit from all the experience of Gesip's experts in crisis management. These courses can be given in French or English. Gesip can also provide services for the creation of training centers and develop accreditations for trainers in the field of fire, toxic or explosion risk management.