CENOVUS SAYS

SHAWNEE LIFE Cenovus Lima Refinery safety program earns industry award

Cenovus Lima Refinery Safety Manager Eddie Ramirez (left) and Safety Advisor Doug Shick receive an Ohio Chemistry Technology Council Award for Excellence at the organization’s annual conference.

Cenovus Lima Refinery recently earned an industry award for a new, more proactive safety audit program designed by an employee.

The program is driving improved engagement and conversation around potential hazards and pairing nontechnical employees with subject matter experts. That’s helping all employees prevent safety incidents.

Safety is the No. 1 value at Cenovus Lima Refinery, and it was the driver of this innovative program to help prevent safety incidents during the facility’s 2021 fall turnaround, and add to our culture of owning our own safety.

Because of the Turnaround Audit Program’s success, refinery leaders have established a permanent monthly audit program.

Lima’s Turnaround Audit Program earned an Award for Excellence from the Ohio Chemistry Technology Council earlier this year. The award recognizes exceptional performances in environmental, health, safety, and security by companies in Ohio’s chemical industry. Also this year, OCTC selected the refinery’s program for a presentation to the council’s Operational Excellence and Sustainability Committee. The committee is the council’s avenue for member companies to share best practices.

The Lima program included 192 participants who conducted 956 audits. Deficiencies were corrected in the field and audit findings and trends were shared daily. The audit program helped to prevent safety incidents, particularly near misses.

Audits are necessary in the refinery to assure regulatory compliance and a safe workplace and to verify the effectiveness of safety programs. But the refinery’s Safety Department wanted an audit process that was more proactive and engaged employees to identify potential hazards before they resulted in an injury or issue.

Lima Refinery Safety Advisor Doug Shick led an effort to create an audit that had its roots in another safety program called STOP (Safety Through Observation Program), which is a partnership with the United Steelworkers. STOP observers are trained to watch activities and using a “no name, no blame” system, gaps can be addressed proactively.

During the 2021 turnaround, audit teams consisted of people with field experience and others from a non-technical background. Teams visited units and jobs with a safety topic and an audit form with open-ended questions that helped generate conversations.

The experience led to an expansion of the concept in 2022, increasing and improving proactive conversations in the plant and helping to drive down the refinery’s recordable injury rate.