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GAO: CSB Not Meeting Its Statutory Mandates

GAO: CSB Not Meeting Its Statutory Mandates

According to a recent report (Aug. 2008) from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the Chemical Safety Board (CSB) is not in compliance with its statutory mandates.  The CSB is an independent federal agency charged with investigating industrial chemical accidents and has been in operation since 1998. GAO report states that CSB is not investigating all chemical releases that have a fatality, serious injury, substantial property damage, or the potential for a fatality, serious injury, or substantial property damage. [Read more…]

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‘Facebook’ Maintenance & Reliability: The Illusion of Performance

‘Facebook’ Maintenance & Reliability: The Illusion of Performance

I used to be on Facebook many years ago in an effort to keep up with old friends. However, I began to realize the forum was often used to create an illusion that someone wanted their community to have about them. I knew many of these people creating such illusions, that is how I know they were ‘illusions’. Their ‘Facebook Family’ simply was not their reality. 

This is not a paper about the pro’s and con’s of social media forums such as Facebook, but more about our propensity to create illusions, or prisms in which we want others to view our work initiatives. While I could apply this concept to many personal and business situations, I’m going to limit it to our general views of Reliability, Maintenance and to a degree Safety (as a by-product of effective Maintenance and Reliability). 

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Communicating with FINESSE: Why is Framing So Important?

Communicating with FINESSE: Why is Framing So Important?

“I just got through with a telephone call,” stated a concerned voice on the other end of the line. “We addressed the wrong issue. I am not saying you. It was collectively all of us. They wanted to sell all parts of the business unit and completely get out of that aspect. We addressed them retaining ownership but having someone else operate it.”


“That is not right,” I replied. “We solved the problem they wanted us to solve, and they bought off on it. “We can develop some solutions for the other problem, but that will take some time and effort.”


“How do you know we solved the right problem?” my client asked. “They have gone over everyone’s head and say we didn’t.”

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Anticipatory Leaders Leverage Future Facts (TM)

Anticipatory Leaders Leverage Future Facts (TM)

Guest Post by Daniel Burrus (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

We cannot turn back the clocks and undo the damage the pandemic has done, but we can move forward with an anticipatory mindset and a firm plan of action. For many decades now, and in all industries, digital disruption has been on an exponential curve upward. Because the pandemic forced us to turn to technology for help on both a personal and business level, the pace of technology-driven change increased dramatically, far beyond merely exponential levels. Now that this change has been set in motion, the question remains: What do we do now?

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Is Your Organization Making The Right Decisions?

Is Your Organization Making The Right Decisions?

Eating a few fries this one time will not increase risks of a heart attack. Plus I like the fries from this joint. I’m ready to order!!

That was a relatively easy decision; however, there are certain decisions that are more complex and may have significant implications to your organization’s future including organizational safety.

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Locomotive Failure Reports

Locomotive Failure Reports

Sir George Findlay was a prominent British railroad manager. He was the general manager of the London & Northwestern Railway, a major company that underwent nearly 20 years of expansion under his leadership. 

His 1895 book, The Working and Management of an English Railway, described an organization for railway track maintenance. The basic gang had four people responsible for 4 miles of track. Supervision and management included inspectors, a chief inspector, and a divisional civil engineer. Each division also had draftsmen, masons, and other special crafts at their disposal. 

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These Three Acts Improve Your Ability to Lead Others with Better Facilitation, Communication

These Three Acts Improve Your Ability to Lead Others with Better Facilitation, Communication

Every written or verbal communication needs a structure. The three-act structure stands the test of time because it is a straightforward, efficient structure that works effectively with our human thinking processes. An example of the three-act structure is the series “Communicating with FINESSE” on Accendo Reliability.


There is still time to jump into the second act if you have not followed from the beginning.

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Post-Its: Their Love/Hate Relationship with RCA

Post-Its: Their Love/Hate Relationship with RCA

WE LOVE OUR POST-ITS!

When I’m asked who our primary competitors are, I quickly and simply reply ‘Post-Its’ (full-disclosure, ‘Post-Its’ are a registered trademark of the 3M corporation)!

It’s hard to imagine anyone who hasn’t been in a conference room at some point in their career, utilizing colorful, adhesive post-its to help express some form of a logical thought process. Whether it be for brainstorming, process mapping, Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) or some form of Root Cause Analysis (RCA), we have become avid fans of post-its to help us produce graphical expressions of our thoughts…WE LOVE POST-ITS!

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Victoria’s New Risk Management Framework

Victoria’s New Risk Management Framework

Guest Post by James Kline (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) is considered an important management tool and part of good public sector governance in Australia. The Commonwealth of Australia and the states of Victoria and New South Wales have implemented ERM. In addition, the states of Tasmania and Western Australia have issued good governance frameworks which include risk management.  This piece will provide a historical overview of the risk management approach used by the Australian State of Victoria. It will then discuss the changes made in the 2020 revisions to its 2018 Victorian Government Risk Management Framework.

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Pressure Flange Seal For Liquid Filter Pressure Vessel

Pressure Flange Seal For Liquid Filter Pressure Vessel

Pressure Flange Seal For Liquid Filter Pressure Vessel. When a leak occurs between pressure flanges and the arrangement cannot be successfully sealed, it is necessary to change the sealing design. This article explains a successful modification done to the lid and body flanges of a vertical pressure leaf filter used to remove particulate from a liquid stream. It incorporates a ‘tongue and groove’ sealing arrangement, with the ‘tongue’ in the lid flange and the recess in the filter body flange.

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