Monday’s Speakers

Additional panelists will be added soon. The organizers are hard at work confirming speakers for the 2021 dates of the Safety Congress. Check back shortly, or sign up to be notified of updates to the programming.

Monday

Welcome

Opening Keynote: Controlling Risk in a Dangerous World

On the front lines of danger, operators face hazards and make life-and-death decisions in dynamic, complex situations. They are the last line of defense. How do we help them stay alive—and be more productive? Managers in organizations manage risk with systematic processes intended to limit the assessed risk. Even in the best organizations, when it is time to go to work, operators don’t manage risk; they control risk. To prevent all accidents—even unpredicted ones—the front-line workers need techniques to supplement the rules and procedures. Since the beginning of the space program, astronauts have developed techniques based on the principles of operating excellence to execute missions and stay alive in unforgiving environments. These principles-based techniques can help optimize performance in any high-risk businesses, and accomplish more in our dangerous world—or out of this world!

Plenary Session #1: The Value Proposition for Safety

The engineering, construction, manufacturing, and transportation industries have made great strides to improve safety on jobsites and asset designs, yet they continue to experience significant operational and process safety incidents. This is especially true in the construction industry, which when compared to other work industries, appears to have a disproportionate number of worker injuries and fatalities. Current safety management knowledge and concepts indicate a need to start addressing safety during planning and design. Hazard identification along with risk assessment and mitigation play a big part in injury and fatality prevention. Developing an overarching, comprehensive safety program for a project that integrates both design and construction requires forethought and planning. Using the hierarchy of controls as a starting point, this presentation outlines recommended practices for such a program that takes advantage of both design and construction to promote safe work sites.

John Gambatese is a professor in the School of Civil and Construction Engineering at Oregon State University. Gambatese’s educational background includes bachelor and master’s degrees in civil engineering from the University of California at Berkeley, and a doctoral degree in civil engineering from the University of Washington. He has worked in industry as a structural engineer in San Francisco, and as a project engineer for a construction management firm in Seattle. He started his current position at Oregon State University in 2000. Gambatese’s research interests are in the broad area of construction engineering and management, and more specifically related to safety, prevention through design, work zone safety, risk and reward, innovation, and sustainable and lean practices. Over his career he has taught courses on a variety of subjects including worker safety, planning and scheduling, contracts and specifications, structural analysis and design, temporary structures, and construction site systems engineering. He is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP). He is a licensed Professional Civil Engineer in California.

Steve Murphy graduated from the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering in 1986 and a Master of Science in Civil Engineering in 1987. He joined The Boeing Company in 1987 as a structures analyst in Boeing Aerospace and then moved to Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA) a year later. Since then he has worked on all BCA airplanes including the 737NG & MAX, 747, 757, 767, 777 & 777X and fifteen years on the 787 in a myriad of roles. As well as programs, he has held numerous functional roles in Loads, Structures, Production, Propulsion and Knowledge Based Engineering. He also spent nine years in the process and tool world including the implementation of CATIA V5 and oversaw the entire BCA Computing System. As part of his duties he led the team that brought the groundbreaking Hybrid Laminar Flow Control (HLFC) into production. He spent two years leading the 787-10 Aft Body Engineering team in Everett and South Carolina, while also leading the 787-9 Multi Spar co-cured box in Seattle, Salt Lake City and Foggia, Italy. Murphy is currently the engineering leader for the 747 Program and leads the BCA teams in support of the new Air Force One program. He is very active with the University of Washington as the Boeing focal for the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. He is a founding member of the Boeing Branch of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and is currently the Boeing American Society of Civil Engineers Executive Focal as well as a member of the ASCE Industry Leaders Council (ILC). He leads the Safety Committee for the ILC.

Terrance Sookdeo is the global process safety technical advisor for Baker Hughes. He has over 26 years of industry experience. After spending 12 years working at the wellsite as a senior engineer he moved into operations, reliability engineering and risk management. Terrance is trained in industrial engineering, Lean Six Sigma, and business administration.

Breakout Session #2A: The Role of HSE Management Systems

External shareholders, regulators, and communities demand that we deliver flawless safety performance. Continuous improvement in all engineering and industry sectors relies upon structured, disciplined approaches for managing safety, security, health, and environmental aspects of an operation or process. Health, safety, and environment (HSE) management systems provide a platform for sustainability and continuous improvement. This session will address the following aspects of management systems: What is the value of developing and implementing structured management systems? Why is management of change so important? How can management systems help in managing company versus contractor interfaces?

Breakout Session #2B: Integration of Safety in Regulator Frameworks

Improving safety culture and performance in any industry not only focuses on internal processes and procedures, but it also requires a healthy partnership between companies responsible for implementing innovative and sustainable safety management systems, regulators who are charged with oversight of those companies, and employees who are expected to work within those systems. The session will explore how industries, regulators, and employees have effectively worked together in the past without compromising a regulator's core mission and role, as well as how best they can build on this partnership in the future to promote a safer workplace. Two examples are OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Programs and MSHA’s Alliance Program.

Breakout Session #2C: Leadership Development

What are the key elements of a strong safety culture, and what can industry leaders do to foster a more effective culture within their organizations? This session will explore this important topic in more detail as well as address related issues, including the role of regulators in promoting a safety culture within companies; the challenges and barrier to worker empowerment; and how companies can more effectively work across cultures. Safety culture requires change that come from the inside-out.

Breakout Session #3A: University Safety Culture Best Practices and Opportunities

Laboratory operations often combine high-risk work and high-resource investment, due to the nature of research, development, and discovery. Often in a university setting, new users come annually, and “seniority” rarely exceeds four years of experience among students. Academic research labs require consistent diligence toward safety, especially concerning the health of laboratory workers; however, the environmental and health impacts of lab activities are easily overlooked. In many cases, simple changes in policy, habit, or process can both increase safety in the workplace and improve resource efficiency.

Chris Coles (MEng, CSP) is the Associate Director of the School of Engineering Safety and Risk Management at the University of Alberta. Prior to joining the university, Chris held EHS leadership roles with several companies. He has worked with national and international SHES legislation for multiple jurisdictions. He employs engineering safety and risk management principles to a broad spectrum of industry trends and challenges. His current focus is on leveraging his extensive industrial experience to deliver high quality teaching to engineering students.

Edd Gibson is currently a professor and holds the Sunstate Chair in Construction Management and Engineering in the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment (SSEBE) at Arizona State University. From 2010 to 2018, he served as SSEBE School Director, overseeing significant growth in its programs and rankings. In addition to ASU, he served on the faculty of North Carolina State, University of Texas at Austin and University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa. His educational background includes a B.S. and Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Auburn University and an M.B.A. from the University of Dallas. Gibbson has been principal investigator or co-principal investigator on over $10.5 million worth of funded research in his career with research and teaching interests that include front end planning, safety leadership, performance and systems, prevention through design, organizational change, asset management, alternative dispute resolution, knowledge management, earned value management systems, and risk management among others; he has received many awards for excellence in research and teaching, including both the CII Outstanding Researcher (1996, 2004) and Outstanding Instructor (1998, 2014) twice. He is the developer of the Construction Industry Institute (CII) Project Definition Rating Index (the entire suite of five tools) and FEED MATRS tools, has consulted with over 70 organizations, and taught over 210 short courses to industry. He has facilitated front end planning risk assessment sessions on over 150 projects. He is also an expert in educational leadership, having held a variety of successful academic management positions over the past 19 years. He has been active on many national committees, among them several National Research Council committees, Department of Energy Committees, the Architectural Engineering Institute, and also served as a Fulbright Senior Specialist in Norway in Fall 2004. Dr. Gibson has several years of industry experience, served as an Army officer, and is a licensed professional engineer in Texas. He is an elected member of the National Academy of Construction and a Fellow in the American Society of Civil Engineers. He was awarded the 2016 ASCE R. L. Peurifoy Award for outstanding research and served as a Visiting Academic Fellow at Cambridge University in spring 2019

Chenn Qian Zhou is the founding director of the Center for Innovation through Visualization and Simulation and the Steel Manufacturing Simulation and Visualization Consortium, as well a professor of mechanical engineering at Purdue University Northwest (PNW). She joined PNW in 1994 after three years of industrial experience. Zhou has more than 38 years of experience in the areas of computational fluid dynamics, combustion, energy, multiphase reacting flows, and air pollution control. She is on the cutting edge in the integration of computer simulation and AR/VR visualization technology to provide innovative solutions for solving real world issues related to energy, environment, safety, and training in steel and other industries. Zhou has conducted a large number of funded research projects totaling over $21 million and collaborated with many experts from over 140 organizations including academia, national laboratories, and industries, resulted in more than 350 technical papers and over $40 million savings for companies. Zhou has been a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) since 2003, and a Fellow of the Innovation Society since 2005. She has been very active in professional societies. Zhou received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in power engineering from Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China, and a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, USA.

Breakout Session #3B: Effectively Managing Complex Systems

With the onset of innovative engineering solutions to technical problems and the application of increasingly complex technology in engineering, it is important to understand the roles and limitations of automation that should be considered as part of the equipment and process design. Key among these considerations are the human factors that should be addressed, as well as the challenges and effective management of human-machine interfaces.

Richard Sears is adjunct professor in the Department of Energy Resources Engineering at Stanford University. He began his career as a geophysicist in Houston with Shell Oil Company in 1976. During his 33 years with Shell Oil Co. and Royal Dutch Shell, Sears acquired significant domestic and international experience in the upstream oil and gas industry, holding technical and managerial positions including exploration geophysicist, technical instructor, economist, strategic advisor and planner, and general management. In 2010, he joined the staff of the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling as senior science and engineering advisor and chief scientist and is a co-author of the Commission’s Chief Counsel’s Report which details the technical and managerial failures leading to the blowout and spill. Sears is currently a member of the Advisory Board of the Gulf Research Program, a 30-year, science-based research program administered by the National Academy of Sciences that is focused on offshore energy system safety and the protection of human health and the environment. He is also a member of the National Academy of Engineering Committee reviewing the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement’s offshore oil and gas facility inspection program.

He received his bachelor’s degree in physics and master’s degree in geophysics from Stanford University and is a licensed Professional Geoscientist in the State of Texas.

S. Camille Peres is an associate professor with environmental and occupational health at Texas A&M University, and she is also the assistant director of human systems engineering with the Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center. She does collaborative research on human factors and high-risk processing industry such as the oil and gas industry, chemical processing, and emergency response. She is currently involved in investigations regarding performance implications for procedure design and use; understanding human robotic Interaction in disaster environments; and measuring team performance in emergency operations.

Venkat Venkatasubramanian is the Samuel Ruben-Peter G. Viele Professor of Engineering in the Department of Chemical Engineering, professor of computer science (affiliate), and professor of industrial engineering and operations research (affiliate) at Columbia University. He earned his doctoral degree in chemical engineering at Cornell University, master’s degree in physics at Vanderbilt, and bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering at the University of Madras, India. He taught at Purdue University for 23 years, before returning to Columbia in 2011. Venkat is a complex dynamical systems theorist interested in developing mathematical models of their structure, function, and behavior from fundamental conceptual principles. Venkat's research interests are diverse, ranging from AI to systems engineering to theoretical physics to economics, but they are generally focused on the theme of understanding complexity and emergent behavior in different domains. His contributions have been in fault diagnosis, process safety, materials analytics, pharmaceutical engineering, and complex adaptive systems. He is a past president of the CACHE Corporation. He currently serves as an Editor for Computers and Chemical Engineering. His book, How Much Inequality is Fair? Mathematical Principles of a Moral, Optimal, and Stable Capitalist Society, was published in 2017.

Breakout Session #3C: Leadership for Today’s 24/7 Problems

With most injuries and accidental deaths occurring outside the workplace, many organizations are trying to determine how their current safety management system could protect their employees 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For most companies, the cost of off-the-job injuries is higher than the cost of injuries that occur on the job, and command-and-control strategies have had little positive effect. Employees need to be introduced to practical tools that can be used every day to reduce injuries both on and off the job. This session will teach you how to recognize the repeated critical errors we make in virtually all injuries and drastically reduce injuries 24/7. Note: The session leader collects opinion data on the topic of his sessions to produce a report on the scope of the issues as perceived by the participants. Please bring a pen with you to this session.

Bio

Breakout Session #4A: Funding Effective Partnerships for Improving Safety

Improving safety is a significant investment in the intellectual capital of an organization. Safety improvements are often coupled with additional benefits to an organization in terms of improved management and communication and increases in productivity. Achieving the benefits of an improved safety culture can be a long-term and occasionally disruptive task. This session focuses on strategies and resources for organizations to find effective external partners to assist with transforming a safety culture. Discussion of funding sources, access to research and training materials, and effective coaching and consulting approaches will be discussed.

Retired Navy Captain Jim Pettigrew is the principal investigator and director of operations for the Ocean Energy Safety Institute (OESI). A partnership between Texas A&M University, University of Houston, and University of Texas – Austin; OESI provides a forum for dialogue, shared learning and cooperative research among academia, government, industry and other non-governmental organizations. OESI’s focus is offshore-related technologies and activities that help ensure safer and environmentally responsible offshore operations. Jim assumed the position of director in May 2014, and principal investigator in December 2018. Throughout his three decades in the Navy, Pettigrew worked predominantly in operational oceanography, surface warfare and information warfare; managing and mitigating risk at all levels of operations. He served most recently as chief of staff for the commander, Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command where he was responsible for the direction and leadership of a team of 150 people, executing a $300 million annual budget, the operations of 4,000 personnel worldwide, the nation's Master Clock, two world-class supercomputing facilities, and six military Oceanographic Survey Ships. He also had the privilege and honor of serving as the commanding officer for the Navy’s Global Atmospheric and Ocean Modeling Supercomputing Center (Fleet Numerical, in Monterey, California) and as the Commanding Officer for the Navy’s only forward deployed Operational Oceanography support center in Yokosuka, Japan. He served twice in the Pentagon and was joint-qualified serving with the U.S. Space Command in Colorado Springs. Pettigrew received his master’s degree in physical oceanography and meteorology from the Naval Postgraduate School and received his bachelor’s degree in ocean engineering from Texas A&M University.

Breakout Session #4B: Unmanned Aircraft Systems: The Changing Face of Risk in Facility and Infrastructure Inspections

Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), commonly known as drones, are being used increasingly for inspections of industrial facilities and infrastructure, as well as other applications such as mapping and seismic surveys. The utilization of this new technology to perform inspections and surveys has proven to be more cost-effective than traditional inspection methods or techniques such as using helicopters or temporary structures. Additionally, this new method for inspection can reduce the risk of exposure to hostile environments and enhance safety. New technology is rapidly being developed and adopted for drone inspections aiding in better and more efficient detection of flaws and defects. Along with the safety benefits of using drones come new challenges and potential risks. This discussion will cover uses of drones in inspections, new technologies for detecting issues such as flaws and defects, and how to ensure that the drone pilot is qualified and capable of safe and professional flight.

Ryan Hyatt works for the Edw. C. Levy Co. in the steel mill services division as an area manager in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Prior to this assignment, Ryan worked as a manager, supervisor, and analyst for Levy in Butler, Indiana and Dearborn, Michigan. Before joining Levy, Ryan served 10 years in the U.S. Air Force as a KC-135R instructor pilot logging more than 3,000 hours total flight time in the T-37 Tweet, T-1 Jayhawk, and KC-135R StratoTanker aircraft. Ryan flew 330 total combat missions in Operation Iraqi Freedom (Iraq) and Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) earning multiple Air Medals. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the United States Air Force Academy and his master’s degree in organizational leadership from American Military University. Additionally, Ryan was selected to attend the High Potentials Leadership Program at Harvard Business School. Ryan has a commercial UAV license and flies monthly to safely perform various organizational functions. He currently resides in Indiana with his wife Erica and four young children.

Bryan McKernan took over as the U.S. operations director at Consortiq in January 2017 after retiring from the Marine Corps as a helicopter pilot after twenty years of service. He is a seasoned retired Marine Corps officer and pilot, having served in I, II, & III Marine Expeditionary Forces, three combat deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq, along with two traditional Marine Expeditionary Unit floats. Beyond aviation squadron fleet tours, his military service crosses a broad spectrum of commands to include Headquarters Marine Corps (HQMC) Programs and Resources, Installations and Logistics, and Naval Flight School where he served as flight instructor in fixed-wing aircraft. He served as lead for training in AUVSI’s Trusted Operator Program (TOP) and serves as the vice chair on the National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) UAS subcommittee. Bryan also serves on the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) UAS Standards Collaborative. Consortiq North America was awarded the AUVSI Xcellence Award for “Best Training and Education Company” at AUVSI’s Xponential in Denver in 2018. Bryan is currently serving as the senior vice president, Consortiq Americas. Bryan has an MBA from the Naval Post Graduate School and has over two thousand hours in rotary wing, fixed wing and unmanned aircraft. He holds a Part 61 Commercial Instrument Pilot rating (Fixed Wing and Rotary Wing Aircraft) along with a Part 107 Unmanned Pilot rating.

Breakout Session #4C: The Day We Will Remember: Safety Leadership on a Personal Level

We all are taught to feel safety on a personal level, but we often fail to realize the effect our decisions and of those around us play on the circle of people in our lives. This session is designed to bring to light the impact of a real steel mill incident’s impact on not only the injured but also the coworkers, family members, and others who work and live with us daily. The session highlights the effects when we play “Russian Roulette” with our lives by making hasty and unwise decisions, both on and off the job. This session delivers the key point that how we make daily decisions, if not properly assessing the risk, could negatively impact those around us for whom we care about. It is a moving and emotional session hosted by a career steel-industry expert with the knowledge and experience to talk directly about good decision making.

Graduated from Clemson University 1980 with a B.S. in Administrative Management. Started career in the steel industry with Nucor Steel in 1980. Held various hourly and salary jobs with Nucor and two refractory companies his first 14 years. The last 22 years in the steel industry were with Steel Dynamics Butler Flat Roll Division. The last 19 of those years were as the Melting Department Manager. Retired from Steel Dynamics in January of 2017 and started his own company, Ricky Rollins Safety Speeches. Was awarded the Don B. Daily Safety Award in 2018 for the best safety presentation at an Association for Iron & Steel Technology.

Networking Reception

The program committee invites all registrants to enjoy refreshments at the welcome reception.