Dropped Object Prevention System as an Element of HSE Management

The Problem of Dropped Objects: Hidden Risks and Real Damage

Dropped objects remain one of the most frequent causes of severe industrial accidents. Often, the initial damage assessment of such incidents only considers the direct costs of equipment restoration, ignoring the colossal losses from downtime, reputational risks, and, most importantly, the threat to workers' lives. In this webinar, Andrey Grigoriev, HSE Advisor at Salym Petroleum Development, analyzes international practices for managing this risk based on the DROPS (Dropped Objects Prevention Scheme) methodology.

Statistics from the international DROPS association show that the vast majority of dropped objects are equipment components weighing less than two kilograms. Vibration, wind loads, and technological processes lead to the loosening of fasteners, which acquire critical kinetic energy when falling from a height.

Protection Architecture: Barriers and Basic DROPS Elements

The speaker examines in detail the concept of four barriers preventing incidents: continuous monitoring, work procedures, technical solutions, and the human factor. It is the human who is in close proximity to a potential event, and the operability of all other protection levels depends on their actions.

The dropped object prevention system is built on three fundamental areas:

• Training and Engagement. Training internal expert trainers and using mobile simulator containers directly at production sites. This allows personnel to practically study correct and incorrect equipment installation methods.
• Equipment Management. Using certified parts, mandatory fixation, and secondary retention of fasteners. Securing elements ensure that if the primary fastener fails, the part will not fall to lower levels.
• Multi-level Inspections. Transitioning from formal checks to cross-functional audits, where equipment is inspected by specialists from related departments (for example, builders checking drilling rigs). This helps avoid "tunnel vision".

Adapting International Standards to Russian Realities

The presentation shows how standards originally developed by the Shell consortium for offshore platforms were successfully adapted for onshore fields using Russian-made equipment. The key challenge here is the introduction of additional securing elements without making unauthorized design changes that could void factory warranties and reduce the structural strength of parts.

To improve inspection efficiency, the company introduced visualized registers. Instead of standard diagrams, inspectors use actual photographs of specific assemblies with the exact number of fasteners indicated. This allows for the instant identification of missing parts. Additionally, video recording is used when inspecting hard-to-reach equipment at height, which allows the working group to analyze the condition of the assemblies in detail.

What You Will Learn from This Webinar:

• How to adapt the international DROPS standard to domestic equipment without violating factory designs?
• Which technical and organizational barriers are most effective against the dropping of small fasteners?
• How to organize cross-functional audits and use video recording to monitor hard-to-reach areas?
• How to create a visualized equipment register for error-free inspections?
• How to motivate contractors to implement DROPS principles and integrate them into the overall HSE culture?