Engineering Safety and Risk Management: Mitigating Hazards and Building Fail-Safe Designs in Energy Infrastructure
This comprehensive engineering course tackles two critical aspects of safety and risk management: fail-safe design in pipeline and energy infrastructure, and risk assessment in the face of an unpredictable climate. With the increasing frequency of natural disasters and energy hazards, the demand for infrastructure that can withstand such events while remaining sustainable is at an all-time high.
The course begins by exploring the fundamental concepts of safety, reliability, and risk assessment, emphasizing the importance of structured deductive methodologies to assess the likelihood of system failure. It then delves into fail-safe design practices for energy infrastructure, using examples such as surge relief systems, automated shutdown mechanisms, and hazard mitigation strategies.
Students will learn how to identify hazards, adhere to various regulatory procedures and codes, and evaluate the impact of human behavior and decision-making in the workplace. The course then shifts focus to climate-related risk assessment challenges, including the unpredictability of catastrophic events and the complexities of managing risk tolerance in evolving populations.
A key technique introduced is Preliminary Hazard Analysis (PHA), which facilitates early detection and evaluation of potential hazards in engineering systems. Students will learn how to develop effective risk mitigation strategies by analyzing Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams (P&IDs), hydraulic systems, hydraulic reports, and Process Flow Diagrams (PFDs) associated with energy infrastructure.
This course is ideal for engineers, project managers, safety professionals, and anyone involved in designing or managing complex engineering systems. By the end of the course, students will have a solid understanding of fail-safe design principles, hazard identification and management, and practical tools for risk assessment and mitigation. They will also be equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to comply with regulatory requirements, reduce operational costs, and protect themselves and others from risk.
This training empowers professionals to design and manage safe, sustainable engineering systems that can endure both time and environmental challenges.
Engineering Instructor | University of Alberta
I received my Bachelor of Technology in Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering in India. During my Bachelor studies, and after, I was involved in internships with Department of Electronics (Government of India), IFB India Limited, University of Calcutta (Department of Polymer Technology). In 2008, I came to the University of Alberta and in November 2009, I emerged as one of the finalists for the prestigious TEC Innovation Contest in the category of Academic Synergy Star. That prompted an interest in working in Chemical & Materials Engineering and I joined the department as a graduate student in the Fall of 2010 and Dr. Thundat's group in January 2011. My research in his lab involves intensive investigation, design and corresponding testing of novel applications in chemical sensing( chiefly in the Oil Sands area) and tools using Photothermal Cantilever deflection technology. This technology involves catching of molecular vibrations occurring at micro cantilevers when hit by monochromatic light rays. This research in investigations employing variable parameters in the field of optical electronics would bring about a major change in the way we perceive materials in the earth and use technologies to sense them.
