Dynamic barriers monitoring in the mining industry and its contribution to process safety

Abstract Different dynamic barrier monitoring methods are increasingly being adopted across industries for enhanced facility safety. Considering the effort and challenges in manually analyzing maintenance and inspection plans during barrier performance audits, in addition to the potential for errors and inaccuracies, continuous control monitoring (CCM) was developed to automate and accurately execute those checks. The strategy presented here involves integrating online risk and maintenance management tools, enabling periodic and automatic verifications of asset maintenance conditions, and providing timely signaling of vulnerabilities with precise data, detail, and traceability. Additionally, the prioritization of maintenance activities and leadership notifications in cases of noncompliance also becomes automated on a risk‐based approach. Significant improvements in accuracy, optimization, and compliance in both barrier and asset management processes could be realized. Process safety as a whole benefits from the automatic and timely identification of possible nonconformities in the maintenance of assets, supporting corrective measures, risk classification analysis, and the adoption of appropriate governance procedures.