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THE FUTURE OF HAZARDS

PREVIEW • FOLLOWING A SUCCESSFUL 2019, HAZARDEX IS RETURNING ONCE MORE AS THE LEADING EVENT FOR THOSE INVOLVED WITH HAZARDOUS AREA OPERATIONS AND PROCESS SAFETY

THE 2020 HAZARDEX Conference and Exhibition is moving home this year and will take place on 26 and 27 February at the Majestic Hotel in Harrogate, UK. The new venue has been chosen to provide exhibitors and attendees with improved facilities and accommodation for what is shaping up to be the largest Hazardex show to date. After last year’s successful introduction, it will once more incorporate the Personal Protection Technology exhibition (PPTex) for the second time.

The key focus of the two-day event will be the conference sessions, which will cover the topics of hazardous area operations and process safety in detail, as well as expanding the conversation to examine important issues within the personal protective technology sector.

The conference will receive expert contributions from regulators, industry leaders, business executives and process safety experts. Senior figures from the UK Health & Safety Executive (HSE), the Chemical Industry Association (CIA), the UK Petroleum Industry Association (UKPIA), the Institute of Measurement and Control (InstMC) and representatives from Brenntag will feature on the list of eminent presenters guiding the conference through some of the most important discussions the industry is facing. In addition, as before, the show will include a wide variety of workshops, free seminars, a networking dinner and an awards ceremony.

“Hazardex has always focused on the Three P’s: protection of personnel, process and plant,” says Russell Goater, Hazardex group publisher and event director. “PPTex has been launched to highlight the need for greater awareness of available tech to enhance worker safety.

“In our recent market research, we discovered that 60 per cent of Hazardex readers surveyed were involved in the purchase of PPE and PPT equipment, either through recommendation, sourcing or final purchase approval. We also discovered that 69 per cent of those surveyed do not regularly read any other health and safety or hazardous environment title, and thus are not getting marketing exposure through those channels.

“With the use of communication and access control systems increasingly used for on the spot location (lone workers), physical well-being (vital sign and environmental monitoring), asset management and maintenance needs, the combination of Hazardex and PPTex gives clear segmentation in the rapidly evolving merging of people and the operational technologies.”

EXPERT GUIDANCE The conference chair will be split between Ron Sinclair MBE, technical manager of SGS Baseefa and chairman of the British Standards Institute (BSI) Committee EXL/310, and Martin Jones, operations manager at CompEx. Sinclair is responsible for the UK input to both European and international standards for electrical equipment for use in potentially explosive atmospheres, and also chairs the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardisation’s (Cenelec) technical committee TC31, represents electrical standardisation interests on the European Commission’s ATEX Standing Committee and chairs the IECEx Service Facility Certification Committee.

Speakers at the Hazardex show will touch on subjects as diverse as: avoiding issues when deciphering equipment markings; examining disasters; and how to get the most from site planning.

On day one, attendees will be able to experience Steve Elliott’s presentation on managing the challenges facing the hazardous process industries. Elliott, chief executive of CIA, will examine three main areas: digitisation and cyber; climate change as a threat to hazardous inventories and processes; and leadership in the industry.

There will also be a presentation by Stephen Marcos Jones, director general of UKPIA, who will discuss digitisation in the sector. Focusing on the downstream efficiencies brought about by digital developments, Jones will delve into how digital change can bring about cost savings for a low-margin sector such as the downstream oil business, from the benefits of using drones and in-tank submersibles to customers using apps. Jones will also examine how safety in the industry is improving thanks to digitisation and how this new chapter can continue to expand with digital replicas and areas of de-risk opportunities.

Glynn Warren, product manager at Extronics, will explain the difficulties operators are experiencing in the application of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and connectivity in terms of hazardous working areas. Warren’s presentation will cover the requirements of hazardous areas and why IIoT technologies may pose risks. Protocols and hazardous area standards will be examined to highlight where IIoT strategies may need alterations and the benefits and drawbacks of certain key technologies in dangerous settings.

DESERVED RECOGNITION During the show there will be a prestigious award ceremony to thank and highlight nominees for excellence and determination in the sector. The categories for awards are: Contribution to Safety, Contribution to the Environment, Technical Innovation, Best User Application and Best Customer Service. An additional prize, the Delegate Award, will be voted on and awarded by conference and exhibition attendees on the night.

Once the conference closes on day one, the drinks reception with gala dinner and entertainment will begin for a far more casual opportunity to meet up with key names in the industry.

The joint conference and exhibition are key dates in the calendar for businesses involved with hazardous area operations across major industries. The event has been shown to bring together the international community for process safety each year to review best practices and the latest research in those areas key to managing process safety effectively.

Attendees looking to take part in the show can book passes through the Hazardex event website. Admission to the exhibition is free and booking forms for the all-important conference can be downloaded online.

Goater says: “Anybody with a professional interest in operation safety for the high hazard industries, including COMAH, will gain vital information from cross-industry peers; those that set the legal requirements and specialist training practitioners should attend to add to their acquired knowledge and experience. The event content is also CPD-approved and therefore not only individuals but companies will benefit too.”

Those who visit will receive access to the comprehensive trade exhibition, access to seminars and workshops providing industryleading content, discussion forums, hands-on practical advice and thought leadership presentations.

The venue is ready accessible and is just 10 minutes’ walk from Harrogate station, 30 minutes’ drive from Leeds-Bradford airport and slightly more than an hour’s drive from most locations in north-eastern and north-western England, Humberside and the Midlands. www.hazardex-event.co.uk

HAZARDEX WILL ONCE MORE PROVIDE A FORUM TO

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