2018 RETA Breeze Jul-Aug

to make them identical. e employer should ensure that the work rules are the same for similar jobs even though di erent regulations may apply.” So, an argument has been put forth that any procedure written for use in conjunction with the operation of an ammonia refrigeration system is by de nition a Standard Operating Procedure and must be certi ed annually. Let’s explore this. Let’s take the example of a sha seal replacement on compressor HS-1. e Standard Operating Procedure should be used to “shut down the compressor HS-1 for maintenance” (SOP HS-1 Task #4b). is should be followed by a pump out procedure (SOP HS-1 Task #6). Now the compressor is shutdown, locked out and pumped out. So how do we change the sha seal? is is where the maintenance procedure comes into play. e Standard Operating Procedure provides the instruction to get the compressor to a safe state, the manufacturer’s Operation and Maintenance Manuals provide the

must be certifying your Manufacturer’s Operation and Maintenance Manuals annually. Right? I would be willing to make a small wager that no one reading this has ever certi ed the manufacturer’s operation and maintenance manuals at their facility. So, we’ve established that the manufacturer’s Operation and Maintenance Manual while providing instruction, is not a Standard Operating Procedure. So, the next question is “Are Standard Operating Procedures and Maintenance and Operation Manuals all that are needed to operate and service our Refrigeration System?” Let’s take the case of a repair to a liquid solenoid valve at an evaporator. e operator can certainly use the Standard Operating Procedure to shut down and pump out the entire evaporator, but this may take an entire shi , isolating and pumping out 20 or 30 cu. Ft. of ammonia. Most Service Technicians will isolate the solenoid instead of the entire evaporator. So where do we nd the instructions for doing this? Normally, this is all found within the Technician’s head. is is not the safest place to store this information.

So do we need a Standard Operating Procedure for this? Let’s look at this. Given a four pipe evaporator with hot gas defrost to the pan, there can be up to 5 scenarios requiring a procedure. ese being: liquid valve train, suction valve train, defrost relief valve train, hot gas valve train, and the check valve between the pan and the coil. So if we have 40 evaporators, we’ve just added 200 Standard Operating Procedures. Now let’s look at all of the other valve trains in your system; Liquid make-up to vessels, liquid injection valve trains, purge valve trains at condensers, etc. So, if we resolve to de ne these procedures as Standard Operating Procedures, we’ve added hundreds if not thousands of Standard Operating Procedures. If we eliminate the need to make the procedure speci c to each valve group, then we lessen the impact upon the facility. But how can we lessen the speci c nature of the procedure, while maintaining the required level of safety? Simple, increase the minimum skill level of the person performing the procedure. Keep in mind these procedures are not “Standard Operating Procedures” but procedures used for maintenance.

instructions to make the repair. So, if you follow the logic that any

procedure involved in the operation of the Ammonia Refrigeration System is a Standard Operating Procedure, then you

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