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Applying Systematic Risk Management Protocol to the Design of a Modern Propellant Manufacturing Plant
in Australia
Robert T. Ford; Safety Management Services, Inc. (SMS); West Jordan, Utah, United States of America
Scott E. Genta; Safety Management Service, Inc. (SMS); West Jordan, Utah, United States of America
William E. Post; Safety Management Service, Inc. (SMS); West Jordan, Utah, United States of America
KEYWORDS
risk management, in-process characterization, classification, risk analysis techniques, key parameters, safety by design
ABSTRACT
The proper application of Risk Management Principles and explosives test data were essential to ensure safe operations
at the Mulwala Propellant Plant in Australia. This paper begins with a brief overview of the risk management
principles applied from design to commissioning of the Mulwala Redevelopment Project (MRP). It then provides
examples of how risk analysis coupled with test data were utilized to identify, evaluate and address potential explosive
safety issues.
Each example will illustrate:
1. The explosive safety issues
2. How the issue was identified
3. What analysis techniques were used to define and bound the issue
4. How the proper tests and test parameters were selected based on the risk assessment
5. The test results
6. How the test results were applied to properly address the potential explosive issue.
Systematic risk assessment leads to specifying and performing the explosives tests necessary to ensure safe explosives
operations in the various conditions and configurations found in a manufacturing process.
INTRODUCTION
The Mulwala Redevelopment project was a contract with the Australian Department of Defence to design, construct,
commission, and qualify a 530 tonnes per year single-base propellant process plant. The site to be upgraded was a
munitions factory built in the 1940’s to support World War II. The team working on MRP consisted of Lend Lease as
the prime, Orbital ATK as the technology provider, and Safety Management Services, Inc. (SMS) as the third-party
explosives safety provider. MRP required improved safety, modern and enhanced propellant manufacturing, no
possibility of 1.1 events, continued propellant production during construction, and regulatory compliance during and
after MRP construction.
To meet these requirements, the MRP team used approaches such as systematic risk assessments, explosives in-
process characterization/classification testing, and application of test data to minimize risk. The need for systematic
risk assessment and in-process characterization/classification is created by varying process configurations and
confinement, variations in energetic material, compositions, physical states, and normal vs. abnormal system insult
energies. Accurate classification of explosive substances and articles is essential for all life cycle stages of explosives,
which may be different for each operation within each stage. Key in-process parameters include composition, physical
state, configuration (confinement or packaging), quantity, conditions (e.g., temperature, pressure, humidity, etc.), and
