Layer of Protection Analysis (LOPA) TRAINING
Duration: 1 day
Format: Instructor-led course with theory, practical workshops, and case studies
Overview
Layer of Protection Analysis (LOPA) is a semi-quantitative risk assessment method used to evaluate whether existing or proposed safety measures effectively reduce accident frequency to an acceptable level.
Applied both in capital projects and live operating plants, LOPA serves as a reality check for risk assumptions, ensuring that safeguards—whether new or legacy—truly perform as intended.
Target Industries
This training is relevant for a broad range of high-hazard industries, including:
- Chemical and petrochemical: reactors, distillation, storage, and hazardous transfers
- Pharmaceutical: solvent handling, reactor safety, and cleanroom operations
- Power generation: turbine overspeed, boiler overpressure, and fuel handling
- Food and beverage: ammonia refrigeration and other pressurized systems
- Mining and metals: leaching, tailings, and high-pressure operations
- Semiconductor and electronics: gas delivery and solvent systems
- Hydrogen and battery technologies: explosion, gas release, and thermal runaway prevention
- Aerospace and defence: fuel systems, propulsion testing, and munitions safety
Who Should Attend
This course is designed for both technical professionals and management personnel involved in process safety, risk assessment, and decision-making.
Technical specialists:
- Process engineers and technologists (design, HAZOP)
- Automation and instrumentation engineers (SIS, SIL)
- Process safety and HSE specialists
- Maintenance and reliability engineers (critical protection layers)
- Management and decision-makers:
- Facility managers
- Engineering and production managers
- HSE managers
Course Structure
Theory (40%)
Participants will learn to:
- Understand when and why LOPA is applied
- Follow the step-by-step methodology for performing LOPA
- Identify and select initiating events (IEs) and consequence pairs
- Use frequency data and apply enabling events and conditional modifiers
- Evaluate safeguards and qualify them as Independent Protection Layers (IPLs)
- Determine risk tolerability and residual risk levels
- Recognize the limitations of LOPA and when escalation is necessary
- Document, communicate, and integrate results into existing safety management systems
- Practice (60%)
Hands-on case studies and exercises focus on real scenarios involving flammable and toxic releases. Participants will: - Translate HAZOP findings into LOPA scenarios
- Determine required Safety Integrity Levels (SILs) for Safety Instrumented Functions (SIFs)
- Assess the credibility of non-instrumented safeguards as IPLs
Validate assumptions and apply theoretical concepts to real operational cases
Expected Improvements and Benefits
Upon completion, participants will be able to confidently apply LOPA to assess and justify the adequacy of safety measures within their facilities.
They will enhance their ability to identify weaknesses in protection systems and ensure that safety functions meet performance expectations.
Participants will return with practical skills to:
- Strengthen the link between HAZOP and LOPA for consistent risk evaluation
- Apply quantitative thinking to support design and investment decisions
- Verify the independence and reliability of protection layers and instrumented systems
- Define and justify Safety Integrity Levels (SILs) more accurately
- Integrate LOPA results into broader process safety and asset management programs
- Improve communication and transparency between engineering, operations, and management
Organizations benefit from stronger risk awareness, data-driven decision-making, and better alignment between design intent and operational safety performance.
Additional Information
Training languages: Available in English and Russian.
Certification: All participants will receive an official training certificate upon completion.
Examination (optional): A knowledge assessment can be conducted if required.
Delivery options: The course can be delivered on-site at the client’s facility or online via Microsoft Teams.
Customization: When participants from the same facility attend as a group, facility-specific LOPA scenarios can be included to reflect their real operations.
For more information about training availability, please contact us:
