At Hazardex Live 2025, TÜV Rheinland's Colin Bartliff, Senior Safety Consultant, and Suresh Sugavanam, Functional Safety, Alarm and Hazardous Area Management Lead, will discuss final element proof testing and ask the question: what can go wrong?

Everyone recognizes the role and importance of proof testing safety instrumented functions (SIFs). This is even more challenging when considering the proof test requirements of final elements. In other words, testing the emergency shutdown valves whist the operating plant is still in production. Always challenging and often not fully exercised as expected.

This paper will provide a real case study regarding the discovery of multiple failures of ESD valves established during a maintenance overhaul and turnaround. Essentially a common cause issue generated by a root cause associated with overly complex proof test methods. This case study will detail the effect of human factors in the testing of final elements and a means for rectifying the issues discovered in this case study to prevent ESD valve failures in the future.

About the author:

Suresh Sugavanam is the Functional Safety, Alarm and Hazardous Area Management Lead for TÜV Rheinland Industrial Services and is an approved TÜV Rheinland Expert in Functional Safety & Cyber Security. He is a member of The IET, BSI GEL 65 standards committees (for IEC 61508 MT, IEC 61511 MT & IEC 62443) with over 25 years of experience in the provision of Functional Safety & Cyber Security Consultancy, as well in provision of consultancy solutions for Automation Projects for the Process Industries. In his current role, Suresh is responsible for managing the consultancy & training solutions for Functional Safety & Security Management, Alarm Management and Hazardous Area Management businesses for TÜV Rheinland customers worldwide.

Colin Bartliff is a Senior Safety Consultant with TÜV Rheinland. He is a Chartered professional Engineer in Electrical & Instrumentation disciplines, Certified Functional Safety & Alarm Management Professional and a Functional Safety Engineer – Machinery, with over 40 years of experience in provision of consultancy & training solutions for manufacturing industries covering industrial automation and control engineering, direct line and quality management encompassing services in accordance with international regulatory standards.