HAZOP

Hazard and Operability Studies. Literally defined as a “danger and operability” study, it represents a technique for identifying and analyzing the danger and critical factors of operation of a system (Hazard Analysis). Initially introduced in the chemical and process industry, it has therefore extended to other sectors including nuclear and rail. It concerns in particular group activities in which the experts identify possible deviations from the expected project behavior, whose causes and consequences are analyzed; to this end, an operational model of the system is adopted, schema-base with keywords, component value-attributes and a reference vocabulary characteristic of the hypothesized or observable deviations of behavior. Unlike FMEA and FMECA techniques, of which it is a complement, HAZOP works backwards from deviations to causes, and focuses on interactive work sessions in teams, managed by an experienced coordinator. The HAZOP approach can be used to carry out hazard analysis using various methods such as ETA, CCHDA, HMC