Introduction to Operation Readiness and Assurance (OR&A)

Over the last three decades, analysis of major Oil & Gas projects has shown that most fail to meet at least one of the four key success criteria:

• Safety in execution.
• Delivery within budget.
• Completion on schedule.
• Performance as promised at start-up.

More than 65% of projects fall short, often continuing to struggle operationally years after handover. The purpose of the OR&A process is to avoid these failures by ensuring that assets and organisations are genuinely “Ready to Operate.”

OR&A addresses three dimensions:

• Project Deliverables – design, construction, commissioning activities and documentation.
• Operations Requirements – operability, maintainability, reliability, HAZOP/HAZID participation, commissioning support.
• Operations Needs beyond Project Scope – readiness of the operations organisation, management systems, spares, and team competence.

This 5-day course introduces the OR&A process, systems, and tools, and provides hands-on training in the OR&A Solution software to achieve continuous assurance of progress toward readiness. LPC Training is exclusively accredited by OR&A to deliver this program, ensuring participants learn from the only purpose-built system and from practitioners with direct project experience.

Important Note

The OR&A Team must collaborate closely with the Project Team while representing the operations organisation of the asset owner/operator. Their role is to safeguard long-term viability, while the Project Management Team remains in control.

Instructors

• David Powell

A time-served engineer with decades of global project experience across diverse environments—onshore and offshore, from deserts to arctic conditions. Since 2000, he has specialised in Operations Readiness & Assurance, developing systems that have been applied in major international projects. He is also the creator of the OR&A Solution software, the only system purpose-built for OR&A, now extended to cover renewables, biomass, hydrogen, gas-to-power, and mining projects.

• John Arbuckle

With over 45 years in the Oil, Gas, and Petrochemical industries—including more than 25 years in supervisory and management roles—his expertise spans OR&A, maintenance, inspection, commissioning, and asset integrity. He has extensive experience both onshore and offshore, in the UK and internationally, and is recognised for his ability to lead teams effectively from both client and contractor perspectives, resolving complex project challenges with authority and clarity.