Human factor risk control for oil and gas drilling industry

Abstract To control the human factor risk for oil and gas drilling industry, the types of work activities involved in drilling were identified, the major accident risk types of human errors were selected, the probability and severity levels of the risks associated with each activity were quantified, and the human factor risk levels of major work activities involved in drilling processes were calculated. Quantitative results demonstrate that the highest risks during the drilling process include being struck by an object, injury by machine, and overexertion; conversely, the lowest risks include exposure to harmful substances or environments and fire and explosion. The highest risk activities are associated with, for instance, penetration drilling, the trip in and out, and the hoisting and lifting operations. Conversely, the relative lowest risk activities include auxiliary operations, well logging and mud logging, equipment inspection and maintenance. The total risk value of all main drilling activities is 11.3947 S/w-h. Twelve risk control measures were selected, and the Delphi method was taken to quantify the human factor risk mitigation capacity resulting from the selected risk control measures. The results demonstrate that the human risk control measures exist in three tiers of effectiveness, with each tier being separated by nearly an order of magnitude. The types of most risk mitigation are risk codes, such as injury by machine, fall from height, and contact with harmful material. The most minimal risk mitigation types include muscle strain and fire and explosion. Finally, these data will be valuable for drilling companies to strategically allocate limited resources to their safety management plan, and they can evaluate the expected effectiveness resulting from risk control measures.