(Translation) My Clash with Foreigners’ Safety Mindsets”

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1.jpg In the past, I used to be extremely envious of foreign employees who came to the company to provide technical support; they possessed core technologies and were meticulous in their work. And now, that mindset is quietly changing. This story begins with the commissioning of the triethylene glycol dehydration tower on a certain platform. Before it could operate normally, it was necessary for the manufacturer to carry out commissioning work; once the platform was ready, the foreign employees arrived as scheduled. Arguing firmly for safety, they went onto the platform for the first time; foreign employees were quite unfamiliar with many of the procedures. The platform provides additional support, with dedicated personnel offering thorough safety training. No, after a while, the foreign employee took out a piece of paper on which the tasks for the day were listed item by item, signaling that it was time to start working. We took him into the meeting room and explained that, per regulations, a job risk analysis meeting must be held first before work can begin. He was a bit impatient: “No, No!” I have a homework schedule with very detailed safety instructions! ”I took the paper and read it carefully from start to finish; there were still some oversights in it. I pointed and said, “Prepare tools, what type of tools?” ”He understood what I meant and had no choice but to attend the meeting. But when asked to sign, he refused, for a simple reason: “I’ve never seen this form before.” ”“Without signing, the work cannot proceed. ”I reasoned with them and appealed to their emotions, explaining the contents of the table in detail. Finally, he gave a thumbs up and happily signed his name. They are meticulous in preventing potential hazards; foreign employees are very proactive, bringing their tools with them and arriving at the site promptly. To ensure the equipment becomes operational as soon as possible, the platform has completed the hydrostatic and airtightness tests; however, the differential pressure level gauge shows errors and requires recalibration. After listening carefully to our various findings regarding this issue, he suspected that the problem lay with the level gauge itself, and he picked up a wrench to remove the flange bolts. I stepped forward quickly to stop them: \"We must first check whether there is still pressure in the tank; working under pressure is prohibited.\" ”“There are two ball valves in front for isolation – is there still pressure? ”He asked in surprise. I confirmed once again that the pressure had been released and gave him an OK gesture. At that moment, I noticed he was holding a adjustable wrench, so I had to stop the work again. He was confused: “I’ve been using this open-end wrench for work (it makes it easy to adjust the diameter at any time). Why?” ”I wiped the bolts clean with a rag, then handed him a ring wrench and said, \"To prevent the bolts from corroding and breaking, the platform applies butter to each bolt as a form of maintenance. Moreover, due to the limited working space, using an open-ended adjustable wrench to remove the bolts may cause them to slip and injure the hand; a ring wrench is safer.\" ”He smiled and nodded. Innovative modifications ensure safety: The triethylene glycol circulation pump plays a vital role in the triethylene glycol dehydration tower. It was previously found that negative pressure occurred repeatedly at the pump’s inlet, which severely affected the pump’s lifespan. Initially, the foreign employees suspected that the triethylene glycol pump had a high flow rate, but individual tests showed that the flow rate was within the specified limits. Later, it was thought that the pipeline was blocked, but no problems were found after clearing it. He was completely at a loss. I brought the blueprints and invited him to help analyze the reasons behind it, but he was skeptical: \"This design has gone through strict scrutiny by the Norwegian Classification Society; there are definitely no problems with it!\" ”Without the help of the foreign employees, we have no choice but to do it ourselves. At this point, the foreign employees also joined in the fun, occasionally adding, “I’m not responsible if you break anything.” ”Ultimately, we found that the liquid return hole of the distributor was very small; we asked foreign employees to verify it again. The diagram indicated a diameter of 16 centimeters for the return hole, but the actual measurement was only 6 centimeters – it was an error in the equipment assembly. The foreign employees were utterly stunned. With the manufacturer’s permission, the platform reamed the distributor, circulated triethylene glycol once more; the pump operated smoothly and the inlet pressure was normal. Source: China Offshore Oil News