Certified LOPA Practitioner for Engineers
LOPA is a simplified form of risk assessment. It is used to comply with industry standards and regulatory expectations. Often it is used as an extension of process hazard analysis (PHA). LOPA is used to evaluate scenario risk and compare it with risk tolerance criteria to decide if existing safeguards are adequate, and if additional safeguards are needed. LOPA helps focus limited resources on the most critical safeguards.
This course will help you understand how significant scenarios are categorized and tolerable frequencies assigned for identified hazardous events. You will also learn to assign risk categories and determine how many Independent Protection Layers (IPLs) should be in place. The course also covers the specification and requirements for a protection layer to be accepted as an IPL.
This course teaches participants to perform LOPA studies. Worked examples are discussed and participants perform LOPA studies to gain experience using the method.
This course is specially designed for:
Introduction to Layers of Protection Analysis (LOPA)
- Learning objectives and goals of using the LOPA technique
- What is LOPA? How is LOPA applied?
- Terminology and definitions
- Where does LOPA fit into Process Safety and the other Process hazard Assessment methods?
- How to Implement LOPA
- Introduction to Reliability Technology
- Reliability of components, series and parallel systems
- Types of maintenance and inspection regimes
Estimating the Consequences and Severity
- Estimating the Consequences and Severity
- Mechanics of Fire, Explosion and Toxic Releases
- Consequence evaluation approaches for LOPA
- Developing Scenarios
- Selecting candidate scenarios from qualitative (brainstorming) hazard evaluations
- Scenarios from design questions and from incidents
- Deciding on the right cause-consequence pair to define each scenario
Identifying Independent Protection Layers
- Purpose
- Definition and Purpose of an IPL
- IPL Rules
- LOPA IPL Assessment
- Examples of IPL’s
- Preventive IPL vs Mitigating IPL
- Continuing Examples
- Protective Systems Design and Reliability
- The concept of Fractional Dead Time ‘FDT’
- High Integrity Protective Systems
- Selection of Safety Integrity Levels ‘SIL’
Using LOPA to make risk decisions
- Comparing Calculated risk to Scenario Risk Tolerance
- Expert Judgement
- Using Cost / Benefit Comparisons
- Comparison of risk decision approaches
- Cumulative Risk Criteria vs. Scenario Criteria
- Continuing Examples
Implementing LOPA
- Is the company ready for LOPA?
- What is the current foundation for risk assessment
- What data is required?
- Will IPL’s remain in place?
- How are risk tolerance criteria established?
- When is LOPA used?
- The Bow-Tie Model
- Discussion: Typical implementation tasks and implementation barrier
Using LOPA for other applications
- Mechanical Integrity Programs / Risk based inspection / Risk based Maintenance Programs
- Risk based Operator Training
- Emergency Response Planning
- Credible design basis for Overpressure Protection
- Evaluating Facility Siting Risks
- Evaluate the need for Emergency Isolation Valves
- Evaluate taking a safety system out of service
- Incident Investigations
- Incidents and Failure Root-causes
Functional Safety Management
- The task for FSM
- Lifecycle phase
- LOPA and FSM
- LOPA team in a nutshell
- LOPA documentation
- LOPA report
- LOPA and verification
- LOPA and assessments
- LOPA and audits
- LOPA and validation
By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
- Explain the concept, purpose, and principles of Layers of Protection Analysis (LOPA) and its role within process safety and hazard assessment frameworks.
- Identify and select significant hazardous scenarios suitable for LOPA studies using qualitative hazard evaluation techniques.
- Estimate initiating event frequencies and scenario consequences including fire, explosion, and toxic release mechanisms.
- Define and assess Independent Protection Layers (IPLs), including preventive and mitigating IPLs, and determine their reliability and qualification criteria.
- Apply LOPA methodology to evaluate scenario risk and compare it against risk tolerance criteria to support decision-making.
- Document and facilitate LOPA studies, including scenario descriptions, risk estimations, and IPL assessments.
- Use LOPA in broader applications, such as mechanical integrity programs, emergency response planning, and incident investigations.
- Understand the relationship between LOPA and Functional Safety Management (FSM), including lifecycle phases, audits, and validation processes.
- Evaluate organizational readiness for LOPA implementation, including data requirements, risk tolerance criteria, and integration with existing safety systems.
- Perform hands-on LOPA studies using worked examples to gain practical experience in applying the technique.
- Key process safety concepts used in LOPA
- What you can accomplish using LOPA
- How to identify scenarios for LOPA studies
- How to address enablers
- The meaning of independent protection layers (IPLs)
- How to identify and qualify IPLs
- The data needed for studies and their sources
- How to estimate scenario risks
- Criteria for making decisions on risk tolerability
- A procedure for performing LOPA
- How to document studies
- Concept, purpose, and principles of LOPA
- LOPA methodology
- Selecting scenarios
- The LOPA processes
- Describing scenarios
- Estimating initiating event frequencies
- Independent protection layers and their reliability
- LOPA study and documentation
- Advanced aspects
- Facilitating a LOPA study
- Responsibilities and challenges
Instructor-led training in a virtual classroom. This means the course is Live Online. Participants will learn through online teaching. Lectures, case studies, group exercises, discussions, problem solving, examples with explanation, assignments and/or quizzes happen in the virtual classroom training. Participants need to connect to the class from any internet accessible location. Each module is delivered live using webinar technology, creating a virtual classroom learning environment. Live sessions provide you with direct access to the trainer so you can ask questions, understand complex concepts and share ideas with peers. Webcam and microphone are REQUIRED to interact with the instructor and/or other participants.
The course content and structure are designed by the domain experts from TÜV SÜD. With immense experience and knowledge in the relevant standards, our team of product specialists and technical experts at TÜV SÜD, developed the course content based on current business landscape and market requirements.
HAZOP training
An understanding of PHA and PSM and a technical background are desirable. If you are learning LOPA to comply with S84 / IEC 61511.