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Susan Mackenzie, who was previously head of the Specialised Industries Division, was appointed to lead the
Energy Division
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. Steve Walker, who had been head of the now disbanded Offshore Division, took on a new role
as the Energy Division’s head of strategic interventions until his retirement in April 2014. Steve also continued to
lead strategic engagement with key national and international organisations, influencing the future regulation of
the energy sector
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4.3 Ageing and Life Extension
The HSE’s KP4 inspection programme focused attention on the industry’s management of ageing and life extension
(ALE). Having run for the past three years, it drew to a close in December 2013, completing a total of 33 inspections
of duty holders and offshore installations across nine specialist topics, namely: structures; marine; mechanical;
corrosion; electrical, control and instrumentation; human factors; pipelines; fire and blast; and process integrity
(note that not all nine topics featured in every inspection). Additionally, HSE inspection management teams reviewed
safety management systems from an ALE perspective.
Throughout 2013, Oil &GasUKmaintained regular contactwith theHSE anddeveloped technical advice to supplement
its
Guidance on the Management of Ageing and Life Extension for UKCS Oil and Gas Installations
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. Over the course
of the year, work groups met regularly to produce technical guidance in three specific areas of ALE management:
floating production installations; offshore structures; and electrical, controls and instrumentation.
This work was overseen by Oil & Gas UK’s ALE steering group, which also provided direction on general ALE matters.
The steering group is chaired by Oil &Gas UK and comprises representatives froma number of its member companies
and the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC). The HSE’s KP4 manager is also a member of the
steering group, providing first-hand insight into inspection findings and wider ALE issues; this is indicative of the
collaborative approach that has characterised KP4 with the shared objective of effective ALE management across
industry.
The HSE published its findings from the KP4 inspection programme in a final report released at an Oil & Gas UK
seminar on 28 May 2014
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. The event provided an opportunity to hear those findings first-hand and to present the
industry perspective on ALE. The HSE website
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is an invaluable source of information on KP4 and the wider aspects
of ALE management.
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In May 2014, the HSE announced that Susan Mackenzie had been promoted to Director of the Hazardous Installations
Directorate. A replacement has not yet been announced.
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Further information on the Energy Division can be found at
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The Guidance on the Management of Ageing and Life Extension for UKCS Oil and Gas Installations Issue 1
was published in
April 2012 and is available to download at
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The HSE’s final report on KP4 is available to download at
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More information on KP4 and ALE management can be found at
