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Operational Excellence in the Process Industry

Excellence and Learning from Disasters –
Applications of techniques in Real Case Studies

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Why Choose Us

The Operational Excellence in the Process Industry Training Course equips professionals in oil, gas, and process industries with the practical knowledge required to convert lessons from major incidents and near misses into sustainable operational excellence strategies. High-hazard industries demand strong operational discipline, integrated safety management, and reliable systems to protect people, assets, and the environment. This training course focuses on upstream, midstream, and downstream operations, helping participants integrate process safety, risk management, reliability engineering, and quality systems into everyday operational practices.

Through this Wallstreet Development Academy Course, participants will analyse real incidents from offshore platforms, refineries, petrochemical facilities, pipelines, and gas plants. By examining root causes, barrier failures, and human and organisational factors, delegates will learn how operational weaknesses emerge and how organisations can prevent them. The course emphasises translating these insights into practical improvements such as stronger procedures, measurable performance indicators, and improved leadership behaviours across operational teams.

Participants will also explore proven tools for analysing incidents, improving operational discipline, and strengthening organisational learning. By studying real case studies from major oil and gas disasters and everyday operational failures, professionals will develop the capability to improve safety culture, enhance reliability, and reduce operational risks. This Operational Excellence Training Course for the Process Industry ensures that lessons learned from past incidents are transformed into actionable improvements that support safer and more reliable oil and gas operations.

Why Choose Operational Excellence in the Process Industry
Course Goals

What are the Goals?

This Operational Excellence in the Process Industry Training Course is designed to help professionals strengthen safety, reliability, and operational performance by learning from real industry incidents and applying structured improvement techniques. The course focuses on practical tools that support process safety, asset reliability, and continuous operational improvement across oil and gas facilities.

By the end of this training course, participants will be able to:

  • Understand the core principles of operational excellence in oil and gas operations
  • Analyse major oil and gas incidents to extract practical and transferable lessons learned
  • Apply risk management, reliability engineering, and barrier management techniques within process facilities
  • Identify human and organisational factors that contribute to operational failures and safety incidents
  • Strengthen operational discipline and improve decision-making during abnormal operational situations
  • Evaluate process safety systems and protection layers used in hydrocarbon processing facilities
  • Design practical KPIs and performance dashboards that support safer and more reliable operations
  • Improve organisational learning from incidents, near misses, and operational disruptions
  • Develop structured improvement plans that enhance safety culture and operational performance

Support continuous improvement initiatives across upstream, midstream, and downstream assets

Who is this Training Course for?

This Operational Excellence in the Process Industry Training Course is designed for professionals working in oil, gas, and related process industries who are responsible for ensuring safe, reliable, and efficient operations. It is particularly valuable for individuals seeking to strengthen operational performance by applying lessons learned from incidents and improving organisational learning systems.

This training course will greatly benefit:

  • Operations and production managers responsible for oil and gas facilities and processing plants
  • Production supervisors and engineers overseeing upstream, midstream, and downstream operations
  • HSE and process safety professionals responsible for safety systems and risk management
  • Maintenance and reliability engineers responsible for pipelines, terminals, and hydrocarbon processing assets
  • Asset integrity specialists involved in maintaining operational safety and equipment performance
  • Quality, operational excellence, and continuous improvement professionals within oil and gas organisations
  • Incident investigation teams and audit specialists in refineries and petrochemical complexes
  • Technical professionals responsible for operational performance, safety, and reliability improvement initiatives
Learning Approach

How will this Training Course be Presented?

This Operational Excellence Training Course for the Process Industry uses a highly interactive learning approach designed to ensure strong understanding and practical application of operational improvement techniques. The course combines expert guidance with structured analysis tools and collaborative learning activities based on real industry scenarios.

Participants will benefit from a range of learning methods including:

  • Expert-led presentations introducing operational excellence principles and process safety frameworks
  • Facilitated discussions analysing operational challenges within oil and gas environments
  • Interactive analysis of real incident case studies from offshore platforms, refineries, pipelines, and gas plants
  • Practical exercises using structured tools such as root cause analysis, barrier models, and risk matrices
  • Group workshops focused on operational decision-making during abnormal or high-pressure situations
  • Simulations and role-play activities examining human and organisational factors in operational failures
  • Workshops to design KPIs, dashboards, and improvement initiatives for oil and gas assets

Throughout the training course, participants will work collaboratively to analyse incidents, identify systemic weaknesses, and develop practical improvement strategies. By the end of the course, delegates will leave with structured action plans, performance indicators, and operational improvement initiatives that can be directly applied within their own facilities and organisations.

The Course Content

Operational Excellence and Process Safety in Oil & Gas

  • Operational excellence concepts in oil and gas context
  • Integrating HSE, risk, reliability, and quality in hydrocarbon operations
  • High Reliability Organisations and learning from oil and gas failures
  • Process safety management systems and barrier thinking in oil and gas
  • Human and organisational factors in oil and gas incidents
  • Case study: offshore platform incident – mapping lessons

Continuity of Operations and Asset Reliability in Oil & Gas

  • Asset management, maintenance strategies, and uptime for oil and gas assets
  • Reliability tools (RCM, FMEA, criticality) for pipelines and process units
  • Alarm management, SIS, and layers of protection in refineries and gas plants​
  • Operational discipline and managing abnormal situations in control rooms
  • KPIs for reliability, OEE, and defect elimination in oil and gas
  • Case study: refinery reliability breakdown and recovery lessons    

Major Oil & Gas Incident Case Studies

  • Piper Alpha and offshore catastrophes – barriers, escalation, evacuation
  • BP Texas City – process safety vs. personal safety learning
  • Deepwater Horizon – contractor interfaces and well integrity failures
  • Gas plant and pipeline explosions – escalation and emergency response
  • Group work: cross-asset generic lessons for oil and gas
  • Translating case insights into improved local standards and practices

Measuring, Benchmarking, and Improving Oil & Gas Performance

  • Designing meaningful safety and operational excellence KPIs for oil and gas
  • Benchmarking against best-in-class oil and gas performers
  • Using incident, near-miss, and process safety event data effectively
  • Root cause analysis and corrective action effectiveness in oil and gas
  • Visual management, dashboards, and decision support for production and HSE
  • Workshop: develop an operational excellence scorecard for your asset

Culture, Leadership, and Action Planning in Oil & Gas

  • Leadership behaviours for safety and operational excellence in oil and gas
  • Just culture, reporting culture, and psychological safety offshore and onshore
  • Learning, unlearning, and relearning in complex oil and gas operations
  • Embedding continuous improvement and change management in oil and gas companies
  • Group presentations: site-specific improvement roadmaps for oil and gas facilities
  • Personal action plans and course reflection synthesis 
Recognition

Certificate

  • Wallstreet Development Academy Certificate of Completion for delegates who attend and complete the training course.
Collaborations

In Partnership With