On the July PMWT Editorial about
Deepwater Horizon

July 15, 2010

David -

I'm sure that you are inundated with emails on your most recent summary of the Deepwater Horizon spill; a nice write-up on the summary status of the oil spill...

Just a couple of observations to add for future consideration for your sections....

I would suggest that the subject of crisis mgmt., risk & failure mgmt. are covered well by review of the Challenger shuttle disaster, Exxon Valdez spill, Pearl Harbor attack, etc. - just to name a few examples.

The point is that each event features some key human decision action (or inaction as the case maybe) where key decisions/choices were made (or not made) that become critical sub events, which lead to a downward spiral, evolving a chain of events that lead to disaster.

While I agree with your assessment that along the way there are many post-event failures that occur, I think the best parallels you could make to reinforce your points would be the decision process (i.e. the 3 methods that were available to drill the well as but one example).

Ultimately that is what this will all be about- poor planning and risk mgmt. choices that led to the event.  Regardless of the unique nature - the decision process is what failed.

Anyway- just my 2 cents-  keep up the good work- enjoyed the article and look forward to future parts.

Bryan C. Miller
Program Manager, Strategic Initiatives
ISR Systems – Raytheon
USA
bryan_c_miller@raytheon.com

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