P&IDs and SOPs (Part 2)

RMP, PSM, and CalARP regulations require that operating procedures (SOPs) be developed and implemented to provide clear instructions to safely conduct activities involved in a chemical process. The law requires that SOPs be “consistent with the process safety information”. If you accept the premise that P&IDs are the cornerstone of process safety information, then it is accurate to rephrase the requirement to say that SOPs must be consistent with the P&IDs. Put another way, SOPs and P&IDs must not contradict each other. When an SOP specifies that a specific valve be manipulated, the P&ID must depict such a valve. To ensure that SOPs and P&IDs are consistent, we suggest reviewing SOPs with the P&IDs open next them. Where actions are called out in an SOP, an operator should be able to identify the components referenced on the P&ID as depicted below.

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This is Part 2 of a series on P&IDs. You can access the previous blog in this series below:

• Part 1: Introduction to P&IDs