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and Gas Producers (IOGP) found that informatio is usually only fully specific departments or locations, all
among 45 reporting member understood by a few people, says Dr of them, or something else? It enables
companies operating in 104 countries, Michael Kelleher, Principal Consultant, users to prioritise programmes of
the number of fatal incidents per year Knowledge Management, DNV GL. knowledge capture and transfer to
rose from 29 to 30 between 2016 and “It is not easily found by others who control knowledge risk.”
2017. IOGP’s analysis showed that at may need it, including people He invited DNV GL customers to
least 87 per cent of the fatal incidents responsible for safety,” he added. get in touch if they are interested in
involved breaches of its own “Knowledge can also be lost through testing a demonstrator model of the
longstanding Life-Saving Rules and that employee retirement, mergers, tool. He added: “Collaboration will
many such fatalities are preventable. acquisitions, industry contraction and help make the final app as robust and
A special report reaffirms concern increased reliance on supply chains or useful as possible. We are also
over safety spending in the sector. subcontracted expertise.” drawing on work with clients to create
Close to half (46 per cent) of senior A robust approach involves a toolkit for managing incident
oil and gas industry professionals identifying knowledge risk, evaluating knowledge retention.”
believe there has been it, capturing and transferring
underinvestment in inspection and knowledge into accessible form, KNOWLEDGE RISK
maintenance of infrastructure and sharing it, and reusing it. MANAGEMENT TO FUTURE-
equipment in recent years, according “Visualise knowledge as an iceberg PROOF OPERATIONS
to DNV GL research. with a small part of its bulk — the Sound knowledge management
The industry should always have “a easy-to-get, explicit knowledge held in strategies and design can help
healthy sense of unease” over safety, documents, images and reports — organisations to improve safety
Vamadevan suggested. Pointing out visible above the water; and the vast practice and respond to safety
that, in the North Sea, lower oil majority, the tacit knowledge held in challenges, Kelleher said.
prices have coincided with a long the heads of people, submerged,” “Organisations benefit from having
interval since the last major Kelleher suggested. a single point to access knowledge
hydrocarbon release that ignited, he for all their different domains,” said
stressed that it would be dangerous LEARNING FROM A RANGE Kelleher. One example outside oil
to assume that safety is under OF INDUSTRIES and gas is the SKYbrary website
complete control anywhere in a In safety-critical environments, all repository of safety knowledge
rapidly-changing industry. relevant knowledge, information, and related to flight operations, air
data should ideally be easily available traffic management, and aviation
MANAGING KNOWLEDGE RISK and understandable when and where safety in general. Air traffic
New research has revealed that needed. In reality, it can be out-of- controllers and air pilots are among
recruitment is firmly back on the date, incomplete, and scattered. the contributors. DNV GL designed
agenda after four years of consistent Some major international oil and and built the platform, and
reductions, spurred by cost-efficiency gas companies are recognised leaders recommended the parameters,
measures. According to A Test of in addressing this, Kelleher noted: templates, and practices for it.
Resilience, DNV GL’s ninth annual “However, there is increasing interest Long-term knowledge retention
report on the outlook for the oil and across the value chain and scale of and sharing are best developed in
gas industry, more than a third (34 per organisation. Learnings are also communities of practice who may
cent) of the 791 senior professionals available from other industries.” meet physically and often share a
surveyed expect to grow their DNV GL has assisted several virtual platform, Kelleher advised.
workforce in 2019 – more than three customers with knowledge risk “Similarly, the best way to
times as many respondents than four management, including projects with proactively share information
years ago (10 per cent). Over a third UK gas distribution network operator captured by a knowledge risk
(39 per cent) also expect to increase SGN, the UK Nuclear management programme in oil and
the use of contractors this year. Decommissioning Authority, and gas is through a platform for safety
However, skills shortages and an Rijkswaterstaat, part of the representatives [‘rep’] community,”
ageing workforce have resurfaced as a Netherlands Ministry of Infrastructure he said. “It provides safety reps
major concern. The issue takes joint and the Environment. throughout the organisation with
second place as a perceived barrier to access to safety rep information,
growth, alongside the oil price and the TOOLS FOR KNOWLEDGE expertise, and lessons learned.”
state of the global economy. MANAGEMENT This would enhance safety reps’
Competitive pressure is viewed as the DNV GL builds web-based platforms for emerging role as key influencers in
greatest challenge. The study also knowledge risk management, and is major accident hazard management,
found a leap of 20 percentage points developing an online application to help said Fiona FitzGerald, Principal
over the past two years in the number organisations identify where critical Consultant at DNV GL. “Our
of respondents looking to increase or knowledge is at risk of being lost. experience and independent research
maintain investment in training and “It is an easily-used tool based on shows that when safety reps can
competence – up from 65 per cent in the simple human concept of a access the resources they need to
2017 to 88 per cent for the year conversation between a line manager fulfil their role effectively, they can
ahead. In mature basins such as the and a member of staff,” Kelleher said. provide valuable insights through their
North Sea, knowledge of design, “The app shows where knowledge intimate knowledge of plant and their
non-routine issues, and asset-specific risks lie. Is it individual staff members, understanding of hazards.” ■

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