The Piper Alpha disaster on July 6, 1988, revolutionized the energy industry’s approach to safety. Companies and organizations across the sector have pulled together to develop and improve training and internal processes to ensure that each worker goes to work safely and returns home safely.

Training personnel so they know how to react to an incident is vital. Training an entire workforce to the same standard, so they have trust in those around them, is imperative. It should be a given that people have confidence in those they operate next to no matter how long they have been in a role, whom they work for or their breadth of experience. Having the tools, belief in oneself and competency to react in an environment where a simple human error could result in the most serious of consequences is paramount to a safe working environment. While there have been various incidents over the past three decades since Piper Alpha, none has resulted in such a devastating, singular mass loss of life. OPITO, as the custodian of the energy industry’s training, emergency response and competency standards, has seen more than 250,000 personnel trained every year around the world to its standards, facilitated by one of the 200 approved training companies in 45 countries.

The sector has long realized that while individual companies always will do what they need to do to stay in the game, in a high percentage of cases a shared approach best serves the working community. This is especially true in areas such as the creation and implementation of common training standards.

Training standards

The unique hazards and special work circumstances on oil and gas sites require specific training. Minimum Industry Safety Training (MIST) and its international sister-standard IMIST are successful safety critical courses undertaken by the sector.

Before MIST was developed and rolled out in 2008, personnel around the world were trained to varying degrees of understanding, creating a lack of consistency among the global workforce. MIST covers nine basic safety elements that all offshore workers are liable to be exposed to during their working life.

These include an introduction to the hazardous offshore environment, safety observation systems, risk assessment, permit to work, platform integrity, manual handling, working at height, mechanical lifting and control of hazardous substances.

Leading-edge standards such as these have been developed by OPITO on behalf of the sector, before and following Piper Alpha, and they are reviewed by industry forums on a regular basis to ensure they continue to meet best practice.

There are now 114 OPITO standards in place that are recognized and adopted around the world, ranging from emergency response training to workplace competence assessment standards for safety critical roles. However, the sector is forever evolving, and to keep up with change and ensure people remain safe and equipped, there is much work ahead of us.

Oil and gas companies continue to push the limits of design to maximize production including deeper wells and taller offshore rigs. These advancements require sharp, meticulous attention to detail and workplace safety.

The sector also has rapidly invested in new technologies and processes well beyond what could have been imagined 30 years ago. Change is progress and the future sustainability of the sector not only follows this but must embrace it at every level to reduce the likelihood of incidents.

Online training

The landscape is shifting with an increase in the use of artificial intelligence, digitalization and automated processes. In some instances, these innovations will help reduce human risk. For example, drones are carrying out inspection campaigns on offshore assets.

Personnel training can be carried out in many ways: formal classroom training, daily safety huddles and online learning can be added to the way safety critical training is delivered. The digital transformation of the classroom element of the Basic Offshore Safety Safety Induction and Emergency Training (BOSIET) suite (including tropical and with compressed air breathing apparatus) is a long-term, industry demand-led initiative to create a change in workforce training through innovation.

More than 150,000 people went through the original three-day primary emergency response BOSIET training last year. The training is widely regarded in the industry as the must-have certification to enable a worker to go offshore. The course includes helicopter survival, emergency first aid, sea survival, firefighting and lifeboat training.

The digital development, which dramatically reduces the course duration, followed calls from the sector for regulated online learning with world-class credibility that delivers efficiencies both to the individual learner and the companies involved.

The theory element can be carried out at any time, from any location and at the trainee’s own pace. It is a perfect example of a modern approach fully aligned with the next generation who are growing up with technology in every area of their lives.

Adopting common global standards and engaging the essential support to apply them is a challenge, and the ability to achieve this goal lies firmly at the feet of the industry. The positive news is that there were 315,513 OPITO certificates achieved last year, and 14 organizations received OPITO approval for their internal competence management systems demonstrating their organization’s commitment to safety and workforce capability.

The sector must continue to keep its focus on the safety, skills and competence of its workers across every region. Consistency and an embedded, strong safety culture is the best approach to cementing continuous safe operations for the workforce.


Have a story idea for Industry Pulse? This feature looks at big-picture trends that are likely to affect the upstream oil and gas industry. Submit story ideas to Group Managing Editor Jo Ann Davy at jdavy@hartenergy.com.