Industrial valve failures and accidents involving faulty valves can lead to catastrophic worker injury and wrongful workplace deaths. Industrial explosions and fires are often caused by valve failure, and the majority of valve accidents are caused by with defective valves or human errors.
The Lyon Firm works with industry experts and OSHA officials in the fields of manufacturing, oil and gas, fracking, food production, and agriculture to determine the root cause of workplace accidents. Each individual industrial accident will require an investigation before a personal injury lawsuit can be filed.
Joe Lyon is a highly-rated Industrial Accident Attorney representing victims of valve failure injury and workplace accidents.
Valve Failure Accidents
High-pressure valves are particular hazardous if they not designed properly. A high pressure valve can regulate the flow of gases or liquids, and are used in refineries, factories, paper and pulp facilities, oil and gas sites, and water treatment plants.
In every heavy industry, valve systems must be safety designed and maintained regularly. Small errors in industrial settings can lead to serious accidents. The Lyon Firm has seen industrial accidents caused by a myriad of safety violations, negligent management, and other preventable workplace issues, including:
- Faulty Valves
- Wrong valve used for specific applications
- Improper pressure valve PSI
- Wrong sized valve
- Poor access to safety release mechanisms
- Poor valve maintenance
- Supervisor miscommunication
- Operator errors
- Lack of worker training
Defective Valve Accidents
Up to 70 percent of accidents in the oil and gas industry are attributed to preventable human errors, which can be caused by worker fatigue, lack of training and management creating unsafe working conditions.
Other industrial accidents, like the BP Deepwater Horizon catastrophe in 2010, were caused by defective components-in that case a faulty valve called a blowout preventer.
In many reported valve accidents, the valve was wrongly selected, and did not meet the proper requirements of the application. Poor engineering and management can lead to industrial worker injury.
In every industry, the best way to prevent valve failure is to select the right valve for the given application and working conditions. After installation, all equipment must be inspected regularly to ensure the safety of the workplace.
Valves have been installed upside down or facing the wrong direction. There should be the proper distance from a pipe elbow to a valve. Seals must be inspected and maintained as well. Management should be looking for the following:
- Temperatures and pressures within operating parameters
- Unexpected pressure spikes
- Foreign materials in a pipeline
- Material incompatibility
- Incorrect assembly
Industrial Accident Lawsuits
If there are valve failures and workplace safety issues related to valve failure, management must correct the problem before workers are endangered. Pipelines may have be dissembled and repaired.
A valve may need to be replaced, even if an entire system must be shut down for a day or longer. Management may gamble with poor maintenance procedures to save time and money, but that only makes a valve accident more likely.
With the advent of digital valve technology and control systems software, management is tasked with operating both hardware and technology in a safe manner. The technology can make a job more efficient, though employees cannot completely rely on only the digital readings. Manual supervision is still encouraged to prevent valve failures.
Digital valve technology allows employers to detect issues faster, though some have been criticized for placing too much reliance on the technology. Employers have been warned by safety agencies against merely “screen-reading” in control rooms, which may not tell the whole story of a system failure issue.
