The Offshore Safety Research is a collaborative effort between American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), Lamar University, and University of Houston. The project is funded by a grant funded by the Gulf Research Program of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM).

Project Title: Developing an Integrated Offshore Energy Industry Safety Culture Evaluation, Benchmarking, and Improvement Toolbox

Program Director: Kevin McSweeney (American Bureau of Shipping)

Overview: There is a general perception in the offshore industry that more rules, regulations, and procedures are unlikely to improve safety performance. Instead, the industry needs a better understanding of the social and organizational factors that foster professionalism during routine and emergency situations. This project aims to develop a roadmap that the industry can use to evaluate and improve organizational safety culture, reduce unsafe behaviors, improve individual performance, and reduce management system failures, near misses, and accidents. Deliverables will include a safety culture evaluation toolbox, and data gathering and analytic methods to identify what actions have been, or could be, successful in improving safety.