competence - the benefits
A recent research study of competence systems in the UK North Sea found that companies
who had implemented such systems could identify real benefits that far outweighed the
initial costs:
"For some contractors, the principal perceived benefits
of having a competence system are that it satisfies their customers and
satisfies the regulator. Duty holders also see value in the
'insurance' that a competence system provides in case of major incidents.
Nothing in a competence system will prevent people making genuine
mistakes, but it can at least provide evidence that the duty holder has
reduced the risk to 'as low as reasonably practicable'.
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"The benefits of a thorough competence management system, however, are seen by
many to go far beyond basic insurance, and include:
- Improved safety of installations (particularly with ageing of equipment)
- Improved quality and professionalism of staff
- High levels of trust and reliance on the abilities of others
- Contribution to building a safety culture of openness and honesty
- Identification of gaps and providing targets for training
- Benchmarks for recruitment, job descriptions, and staff development
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"Measures of improvement for a competence management system are seen as
quantifiable in terms of:
- reductions in safety incidents
- reductions in numbers of shutdowns per trip
- reductions in equipment failures
- improved uptime of production operation
- increased productivity per employee
- significant reduction in the cost of training."
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NE Webster, RH Jones, CG Ramsay:
"Study of
Competence Assurance System in the Context of Offshore Petroleum Operations",
Aberdeen 2001 |
