High Integrity Protective Systems (HIPS)

High Integrity Protection System (HIPS) or High integrity Pressure Protection System (HIPPS) are Safety Instrumented Systems (SIS) which should adhere to the international standard for Functional Safety, i.e. IEC 61511. They work similarly to any other Safety Instrumented Function (SIF) by eliminating the source of hazard (in the instance of HIPPS, this would be sources of overpressure). Since these SIFs are to protect against loss of containment and of course, loss of Hydrocarbon containment as an example of severe consequences, they must adhere to the onerous requirements and hence high integrity.

ES has extensive experience in undertaking HIPS and HIPPS studies in concept, design and engineering, validation and site acceptance phases of project lifecycle in accordance with the appropriate international standards for Functional Safety. In addition to the Functional Safety Lifecycle, ES has their specific project lifecycle presented below:

FAQ

Depending on project requirements or the type of HIPS deliverable, ES are able to utilise the following software at their latest versions:

  • PHA-PRO or ES developed hazard software for qualitative and semi-quantitative analysis
  • exSILentia or ES developed SIL verification software
  • Isograph FaultTree+
  • DNV PHAST risk / SAFETI or ES developed in-house tool for the calculation of risk

As a minimum, the following information would be required in order to prepare for the HIPS study:

– Existing HIPS studies

– Study approved P&IDs

– Cause and Effect diagrams

– Operating Data procedures

– Occupancy data

– Equipment rating and data sheets

Based on the project requirements, additional information may be required, which will be highlighted within the Terms of Reference (ToR).

On award of the study ES will issue a project ToR, which will highlight the assumptions that shall be made in the study, along with the study methodology and data sources that will be utilised as well as any further information required from the client.

Upon acceptance of the ToR, ES will conduct the HIPS QRA and will prepare a report describing the facility, the scope of work, a detailed methodology, the results of the analysis (i.e. IRPA and PLL compared against the risk criteria) and any recommendations for further risk reduction. The following are typical outputs of a HIPS study:

  • Overpressure Process Hazard Assessment (OPHA)
  • Overpressure Layer of Protection Analysis (LOPA)
  • HIPS System Narrative
  • HIPS and ESD Safety Requirement Specification
  • Overpressure Fault Tree Analysis
  • Consequence Analysis
  • HIPS QRA

ES have extensive HIPS study experiences, having managed major HIPS projects involving some of the worlds largest offshore oil and gas fields. For more information, or to discuss your needs for conducting a HIPS study, please contact us using the form below or email [email protected].