Process safety practices and formal safety management systems have been in place in some companies for many years. Process safety management (PSM) is widely credited for reductions in major accident risk and in improved chemical industry performance. Unfortunately, traditional PSM programs are typically based on implementing a standard set of requirements that, in some situations, may not be enough to adequately manage risk, while in other cases may cause them to “overwork” process safety.

To promote PSM excellence and continuous improvement throughout industry, the Center for Chemical Process Safety created Risk-based Process Safety as the framework for the next generation of PSM. This approach encourages companies to "consider the risk" when making decisions on how to apply its resources (while of course, continuing to comply with applicable regulatory requirements). It is possible that a company may not be working on the right things, or that it is not doing the necessary things well. Even if the results are satisfactory, resources may be wasted on some tasks that could be done more efficiently or tasks that should not be done at all. This paper examines how to use risk to guide decisions that ultimately steer invariably limited resources in the right direction, helping companies manage both risk and their bottom line.