Keynote presentation: Lessons from the Piper Alpha Disaster
| Monday, August 18, 2025 |
| 9:30 AM - 10:15 AM |
| Ballroom |
| Sponsored By: |
Overview
Sean Brady
Details
On 6 July 1988, the Piper Alpha oil platform in the North Sea became the site of one of the most catastrophic offshore disasters in history. A series of explosions and fires killed 167 people and destroyed the entire platform. This presentation examines the Piper Alpha disaster from both technical and organisational perspectives. By examining Piper Alpha as a complex system failure rather than a simple cause-and-effect incident, this presentation will demonstrate how seemingly minor technical issues can interact with organisational weaknesses to produce catastrophic outcomes.
Speaker
Mr Sean Brady
Brady Heywood
Lessons from the Piper Alpha Disaster
Biography
Sean Brady is a forensic engineer and a Fellow of Engineers Australia.
In 2020 he completed the Brady Review, which investigated the causes of fatalities in the Queensland mining industry. The review was tabled in parliament and made 11 recommendations to the regulator and mining companies on how to improve safety.
He also speaks and writes on the causes of technical and organisational failure.
