Development of a Structured Framework for Handing Shift Handover for an Upstream Oil and Gas Producing Company

Oil and gas facilities are complex and hazardous systems that rely on plant, equipment, and people working together to achieve commercial goals safely and effectively. People need information about the system to maintain an accurate picture of what is happening. Continuous operation of oil and gas facilities requires people to work in shifts. Ensuring safety and efficiency requires critical information to be communicated between shifts. Shift handover is regarded as important in many shift-working occupations. Discontinuity of tasks and personnel gives rise to the risk of non-transmission or miscommunication of critical information. All communication is prone to error. This makes shift handover a highly critical activity that is performed frequently with little opportunity to engineer out potential errors. Effective communication is important in all organizations when a task and its associated responsibilities are handed over to another person or work team. This can occur at shift handover, between shifts, and with day workers. Although the importance of reliable communication may be recognized, guidance to personnel on how to communicate effectively may be lacking [1].