New report helps companies set performance goals

Companies can better define and achieve performance goals, thanks to a new OGP publication. The report, Operating management system framework for controlling risk and delivering high performance in the oil and gas industry, also helps set stakeholder benefits within the context of managing risk

The report applies to every type of upstream or downstream company activity, from construction to decommissioning, throughout the entire value chain and lifecycle of the business and its products.

The framework offers an integrated approach and the flexibility to address some or all of a wide range of risks, impacts or threats related to occupational health and safety; environmental and social responsibility; process safety, quality and security. It consists of several fundamentals and elements divided into two interdependent components:

• Four fundamentals focus attention on the management principles most important for an effective operating management system (OMS)—leadership, risk management, continuous improvement and implementation. These principles apply equally to every element of the OMS to drive its success.

• Ten elements establish a structure to organize the various components of an OMS. Each of the ten elements includes an overview, a purpose statement and a set of expectations that define the system’s intended outcomes.

The degree of integration and the scope of an OMS will be determined by individual companies and will differ depending on their activities, organisational structure and management system maturity.

This report replaces Report 210, Guidelines for the development and application of health, safety and environmental management systems, first published in 1994. It provided a basis for companies to establish systems to consistently manage health, safety and environmental issues. Since the report’s publication, company management systems have developed considerably, the scope of systems has expanded, lessons have been learned and many good practices have been shared across the industry.

The new framework is supported by an OMS in practice supplement, which provides guidance on how to establish and sustain an OMS and includes many examples of industry specific processes and practices. It is a separate publication from the OMS framework, so it can be updated to reference the latest OGP and IPIECA good practice publications and to provide links to other relevant publications.

The supplement consists of three sections:

• Getting started. How to use the guidance for companies yet to establish an OMS and for those with existing systems under review as part of continuous improvement.
• Processes and practices. The oil and gas industry has a range of standards, processes, practices, rules, methods, guides, tools, procedures and work instructions that aim to reduce and control its risks. They are referred to collectively as “processes and practices”. This section offers examples of these, called P1 to P10.
• Sustaining and improving the system. This section offers examples of measures, called M1 to M10, to assess the successful implementation, improvement and effectiveness of an OMS.

Copies of the report (OGP 510) and supplement (OGP 511) are freely available to download from the OGP website.