|
|
FIT provides specialty consulting services, reviewing and auditing laboratory operations to maximize laboratory efficiency, providing guidance in meshing laboratory operations with the refinery business plan, and helping clients achieve compliance to regulatory agency requirements. These services allow clients to assess their overall capabilities, benchmarking their existing laboratory operations for efficiency, effectiveness, compliance, and degree of support of the refinery operations. The FIT audit also strives to assist clients in maximizing the use of modern laboratory instrumentation, including a Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS), if applicable. One of our key objectives is to identify areas for improvement in existing laboratory operations, as well as to identify particular applications where the use of new analytical technology and improved quality assurance systems will provide improved analytical capability and laboratory performance.
The refinery support laboratory is an integral part of refinery operations, providing assurance that operational targets are being achieved for process streams. In addition, a modern refinery support laboratory is a key participant in refinery quality assurance systems to assure that all products shipped meet identified specifications and regulatory requirements. To provide this service, refinery laboratories must operate with comprehensive and active internal quality assurance systems.
Scope of Work Involved
FIT Consultants will assist clients by providing a comprehensive laboratory review and audit, which includes evaluations of:
Refinery Customer Requirements for Laboratory Test Data
Discussions will be held with key process operations and engineering support personnel to understand the nature, accuracy and precision of laboratory test data required, as well as measurement of any additional properties of refinery process streams not currently being done that would result in tighter control of process variables.
Current Laboratory Operations
To evaluate typical refinery laboratory operations, FIT will carry out a detailed review of laboratory operations including:
- Procedure for delivery of test samples to the laboratory.
- Procedure for handling samples in the laboratory.
- Analytical test methods employed in the laboratory.
- Expertise of bench testing technicians.
- Determination of critical tests for refinery operation and product shipment.
- Laboratory staffing levels relative to the average daily sample load.
- Procedure for handling test result data within the laboratory.
- Procedure for reporting test results to customers.
- Procedure for storage of test data.
- Policy for retains of product samples.
In addition, all existing analyzers installed and in use in the laboratory will be evaluated for operational effectiveness, including the accuracy and precision of test results produced, tester time required to operate the analyzer and maintenance required for each analyzer.
The explicate purpose of this review of laboratory operations and laboratory analyzers is to identify opportunities for improvements in laboratory operational efficiency and effectiveness in supporting refinery operations, to identify opportunities for replacement of laboratory analyzers, and/or to recommend positive changes in the use of current laboratory analyzers. Positive improvements in laboratory operations will generally provide a reduction in the cost of testing supplied by the refinery laboratory while still maintaining the quality required for test result data.
Quality Assurance (QA) Systems
A detailed review of QA systems active in the laboratory will be conducted to assure that all test results are provided to customers at required levels of accuracy and precision. This will include review of the laboratory QA Manual (if applicable), the use of Statistical Quality Control (SQC) to monitor the precision of critical tests performed, and preventive maintenance procedures for laboratory tests and analyzers. In addition, the procedures used for initial training of bench testing personnel and refresher training will be reviewed for effectiveness.
The purpose of these reviews is to understand the extent and applicability of QA systems currently used in the laboratory to assure the quality of analytical test data and recommend additional activities that may be needed in current laboratory QA systems.
Regulatory Testing Requirements
A review of all test methods required by regulatory agencies (i.e. – gasoline testing as required by the California Air Resource Board (CARB) or federal or local EPA) will be done to assure that the methods as practiced in the refinery laboratory meet agency requirements, including required QA support for these test methods. The use of improper methods for measuring regulated properties of fuels can result in substantial fines for the refinery, should the EPA challenge laboratory test results and methods used. This review will assure that all regulatory testing requirements are being met.
Laboratory Safety Review
At all times during the laboratory audit and review, FIT will be alert for unsafe conditions within the laboratory and for possible violations of the OSHA 1910 rule as it applies to testing laboratories.
FIT Recommendations for Improvements in the Laboratory:
From the information gathered in the activities outlined above, FIT will provide a working model to improve laboratory operations in support of the refinery business plan, to upgrade existing laboratory analyzers as necessary, and to refine laboratory QA systems to assure that laboratory customers in the refinery and refinery customers are provided with analytical test results that always meets their requirements. From a detailed review and discussion of this model, FIT will identify opportunities for improving performance and efficiency of the various activities in the laboratory, based on standard industry practices as described in ISO Guide 17025 and API Standard 1512.
FIT personnel involved in laboratory operational and compliance reviews and audits look forward to the opportunity to assist your organization in achieving improved laboratory operational efficiencies and effectiveness that mesh well with the refinery business plan, improved laboratory QA systems to assure consistent and accurate laboratory test results and provide assurance that all testing required for fuel properties regulated by government regulatory agencies are within the agency requirements.