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Foreword

On 6 July 1988 167 men died as a result of an explosion and fire on board che Piper Alpha platform in the UK Sector of the North Sea.

A public inquiry into the disaster was held, headed by Lord Cullen, to investigate the cause of the disas-ter and to make recommendations to prevent a similar occurrence in the futurę. Lord Cullen issued his report in December 1990 which included 106 recommendations. He concluded that one of the primary causes of the disaster was a failure in one of the key management systems, that is the P.T.W System.

The E & P Forum set up its own Piper Alpha Task Force to review the Cullen Report. The report issued by that task force highlighted, among other things, the importance of Safety Critical Procedures which included, within these, P.T.W Procedures.

This document has been produced by the E & P Forum P.T.W. Task Force to provide guidance to E & P Operators and Service Companies in developing and monitoring their own P.T.W Systems. It addresses what the task force considers to be the key elements of good P.T.W systems. These include those areas of P.T.W highlighted in the Cullen Report.

In producing this document the Task Force has drawn heavily on the Offshore Industry Advisory Com-mittee (OIAC) Guidance on P.T.W Systems in the Petroleum Industry.

The E&P Forum welcomed the involvement of Staff and members of the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) in the production of this document and the endorsement of the Guide-lines by their Directors.