Common Inspection Findings

Gareth Burrows OES

The OES journey with regards to dropped object prevention and major findings mainly from static dropped objects. Over the last 10 years 1775 dropped objects surveys have been carried out by OES with hundreds of thousands of potential dropped objects found. In 2015 175 rigs were surveyed and 50,405 potential dropped objects were identified.

The most common findings are: 5. Sheave Blocks; 4. Loudspeakers - incorrect use of safety sling and incorrect type of carabiner; 3. Redundant Equipment - includes loose lifting equipment, poor housekeeping; 2. Ladders - includes missing bolts; 1. Strip Lights - nearly 3 times as many findings on a strip light than on anything else - lack of inadequate securing. Although these are the most frequent findings, they are often not the actual dropped objects cases that take place.

Some examples of other findings include incorrect selection of hand tools; poor placement of equipment during maintenance; falling objects from rotating equipment. OES have some basic measures to further mitigate dropped objects. These include  engaging with the rig crew and conducting a meaningful survey; provision of the correct tools for working at height; relocating equipment that is in a strike path; selecting a good 3rd party to set up a dropped objects progress and heightened awareness around not leaving unnecessary equipment in the Mast/Derrick.