Structured and practical Incident

Investigation at Allseas
Allseas, a global leader in offshore pipeline installa-tion and subsea
construction, uses BlackBox and Investigator 3 to deliver a recog-
nized incident investigation solution throughout the company. The
software – based on the TOP-SET methodology – enables Allseas
to investigate and report incidents in a timely, structured and prac-
tical manner.

Allseas’ decision to implement a recognized in- own requirements as well as exceeding the
ci-dent investigation solution was influenced by standard expected by clients and industry regu-
a variety of reasons, says Johan Vermeer, Man- lators. “Although we already had an in-house
ager QHSE. “We wanted to implement a more incident investigation program in place, clients
structured and uniform method to better facili- and regulators were looking for an accepted in-
tate our Vessel Management Teams (VMTs) to dustry standard to be applied,” explains Wally
report incidents. And in Australia there were Gelok, QHSE Project Manager in Australia.
triggers that encouraged us to start looking for
a leading methodology and software.” Investigation and reporting as a standard and
repeatable process
Triggers to implement a recognized method Allseas selected the Kelvin TOP-SET method and
Allseas opted to apply a standardized and uni- related BlackBox and Investigator 3 software af-
versally accepted incident investigation and re- ter reviewing a number of industry recognized
porting system across their fleet to satisfy their programs.
According to Gelok, the combination of Kelvin Allseas’ safety program
TOP-SET methodology and BlackBox and Inves- In 2009 Allseas launched Allsafe, a safety pro-
tigator 3 technology provided Allseas with a gram with the ultimate goal of lowering incident
“best fit” solution, both in terms of being a rec- and accident rates to zero. Vermeer says that
ognized system and offering a straightforward, safety awareness and behavior are fundamental
practical approach. to the Allsafe way of thinking.

“After researching the TOP-SET program, we re- We believe that that behavior can be positively
alized that the BlackBox and Investigator 3 soft- changed by encouraging a proactive approach
ware combination was the right choice for us. at all levels within Allseas. We do this through
The software provides a simple and practical workshops, videos and posters, but also by
method for capturing the information required highlighting the efforts of personnel who active-
and helps to provide a suitable pathway for the ly contribute to improved safety on the vessels,
investigation,” says Gelok. reporting their contributions in Allseas’ in-house
magazine and presenting them with phone
“Effectively implementing automatic reporting cards to make calls from the vessel to their fam-
to a set standard means that offshore personnel ilies.”
can now investigate and report in a timely man-
ner; it enables them to provide a high level of The majority of the VMTs and Safety Officers are
investigation and reporting as a standard and now trained in the Kelvin TOP-SET method and
repeatable process.” know how to use BlackBox. With Allseas’ vessels
operating all over the world, this required a lot
Two-tier system of planning and Vermeer is delighted with the
Allseas sees TOP-SET as a two-tier system. “For outcome. “An additional advantage of the in-
the lower level of incidents that can occur on company courses given by the Kelvin trainers is
our vessels, the on-board VMT and Safety Of- that our people from all over the world met and
ficer are confident that investigation, and subse- discussed the same cases. Consequently, we all
quently reporting the root causes, are carried use the same methodology and language now.”
out in an effective and reliable manner that can
be repeated,” continues Gelok. “More consistent, with correct data and well-
founded causes”.
“For the second tier, we trained onshore person- Furthermore, Vermeer is pleased with the posi-
nel to take the lead and to assist the offshore tive influence the introduction of BlackBox soft-
team in the more serious or higher level investi- ware has had on the way incidents are reported
gations when required. It was important that the and investigated. Vermeer explains: “Compared
system Allseas decided to implement was prac- to the old situation, the standard of reports has
tical and could be used in combination with our improved, providing us with correct data and
management processes, whilst also providing well-founded causes. They are also more con-
support and assistance to our offshore person- sistent, with the same structure for each report.”
nel in particular.”
On board Allseas’ vessels, the recording and re-
porting of incidents is done by the VMT, com-
prising the Master, Chief Engineer and Con-
struction Superintendent, people who are
trained to make instant decisions. Vermeer says
that under the past system this could some-
times cause the VMT to jump to conclusions.
“The new incident investigation method, sup-
ported by the BlackBox software, helps our
VMTs to investigate incidents with an open
mind before reaching conclusions and imple-
menting preventive measures,” says Vermeer.
The Swiss-based Allseas Group, founded in 1985
The feedback from the vessels is also positive,
and headed by Edward Heerema, is a global
adds Vermeer. “The vessels are sending me pic-
leader in off-shore pipeline installation and sub-
tures from walls filled with the charts used in the
sea construction. They are experts in the execu-
TOP-SET method. Onshore, we occasionally
tion of large and complex projects, providing
want to further investigate incidents for which
worldwide support to clients from the conceptu-
the reports are started offshore. We used to do
al design stage to engineering, procurement,
this in Microsoft Word, which meant some of
installation and commissioning.
our reports were unstructured and lacked the
necessary consistency.
The Swiss-based Allseas Group, founded in 1985
“BlackBox and, where needed Investigator 3, en- and headed by Edward Heerema, is a global
ables us to use the information entered in the leader in off-shore pipeline installation and sub-
system offshore and continue with the investi- sea construction. They are experts in the execu-
gation on-shore. This is much more efficient, tion of large and complex projects, providing
with a lower chance of errors and no loss of in- worldwide support to clients from the conceptu-
formation. Fortunately, the Investigator 3 soft- al design stage to engineering, procurement,
ware – in place for the investigation of more se- installation and commissioning.
rious incidents – has not been needed yet.”

“Structured and timely recording leads to the Investigator 3 structures your incident investiga-
right analysis” tion by following the steps of the TOP-SET®
In Australia, Gelok is also positive about the methodology. There are two incident analysis
benefits of implementing TOP-SET and Black- methods in Investigator 3: Root Cause analysis
Box: “It’s a good fit for our operations and it and Tripod Beta analysis. Both are well-known
closes the perceived gap between our previous- methods to find the most important and under-
ly used in-house system and the client and reg- lying causes of an incident.
ulator expectations.”

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