Abstract
The aim of this study is modeling the main relationships among variables that influence the process safety of Petroleum exploration and production. To model these relationships we used the Systems-Theoretic Accident Model and Processes (STAMP) in the Deepwater Horizon accident occurred on April 20, 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico. A new holistic perspective based on systems theory, systems thinking, and resilience engineering brought by new analysis models like STAMP (Leveson, 2004) or FRAM (Hollnagel, 2012) is needed in complex socio-technical systems such as exploration and production of oil. It is a view which sees “human error is an effect of trouble deeper inside the system…[where] the focus of analysis must turn to the system in which people work: the design of equipment, the usefulness of procedures, the existence of goal conflicts and production pressure” (Dekker, 2007). STAMP incorporates three basic components: constraints, hierarchical levels of control, and process loops. Accidents are understood “in terms of why the controls that were in place did not prevent or detect maladaptive changes, that is, by identifying the safety constraints that were violated and determining why the controls were inadequate in enforcing them. The STAMP analysis of the Deepwater blowout, recognized by some authors as the largest accident in the oil history, illustrates the usefulness of the STAMP model to foster evaluation of the whole system and uncover useful levers for elimination of future loss potential, thereby making progress on process safety.
