MECHANICAL INTEGRITY AS A PILLAR OF U.S. OIL AND GAS SAFETY: LESSONS FROM HIGH-RISK CERTIFICATION, HEAVYLIFTING OPERATIONS, AND THIRD-PARTY INSPECTION
MECHANICAL INTEGRITY AS A PILLAR OF U.S. OIL AND GAS SAFETY: LESSONS FROM HIGH-RISK CERTIFICATION, HEAVYLIFTING OPERATIONS, AND THIRD-PARTY INSPECTION
MECHANICAL INTEGRITY AS A PILLAR OF U.S. OIL AND GAS SAFETY: LESSONS FROM HIGHRISK CERTIFICATION, HEAVYLIFTING OPERATIONS, AND THIRD-PARTY INSPECTION
MECHANICAL INTEGRITY AS A PILLAR OF U.S. OIL AND GAS SAFETY: LESSONS FROM HIGHRISK CERTIFICATION, HEAVYLIFTING OPERATIONS, AND THIRD-PARTY INSPECTION
As part of Human Capital Career Trends Magazine’s ongoing series on executive leadership and industry transformation, Ana Paula Montanha interviews Jean Carlos Queiroz Carvalho, a mechanical engineer specializing in the inspection, testing, and certification of safety-critical equipment. Drawing on more than a decade of hands-on experience in high-risk Oil and Gas environments, Jean explains how mechanical integrity functions not merely as a technical discipline, but as an operational governance system that underpins safety, regulatory compliance, and reliability across complex energy infrastructures.
INTRODUCTION
Mechanicalintegrityhasbecomeoneofthemost consequentialriskvariablesinUS OilandGasoperations, particularlyoffshore,whereheavylifting,pressure containment,andhumanexposureconvergein environmentswithvirtuallyzerotoleranceforfailure Data fromtheUS BureauofSafetyandEnvironmental Enforcement(BSEE)illustratethescaleofthisexposure Incalendaryear2023,BSEEreportedzerofatalitiesacross offshoreoperations,yetrecorded203injuries,375lifting incidents,149fires,106gasreleases,and12spillsofone barrelormore(BureauofSafetyandEnvironmental Enforcement[BSEE],2023) Whilethesestatisticsdonot assigncausation,theydemonstratehowfrequently safety-criticalsystemsarestressedunderrealoperating conditions
Thisoperationalrealityexistsalongsidethesector’s strategicimportancetonationalenergysecurityand economiccontinuity.AccordingtotheU.S.Energy InformationAdministration(EIA),theUnitedStates producedmoreenergythaneverbeforein2024,withtotal energyproductionexceeding103quadrillionBritish thermalunits,whilecrudeoilproductionreachedarecord averageof132millionbarrelsperday(US Energy InformationAdministration[EIA],2025) Inthiscontext, failuresinsafety-criticalequipmentextendbeyond individualassets,affectingproductioncontinuity, workforceexposure,regulatoryintervention,andpublic confidence
Againstthisbackdrop,theprofessionaltrajectoryofJean CarlosQueirozCarvalhooffersafield-testedperspective onhowmechanicalintegrityispreservedinthemost demandingOilandGasenvironments
AMechanicalEngineerwithabachelor’sdegreefrom UniversidadeSeverinoSombra,Jeanbringsmorethan elevenyearsofspecializedexperienceininspection,testing, andcertificationofsafety-criticalliftingsystems,industrial instrumentation,andhigh-pressureequipment Hiscareer hasbeendefinednotbytheoreticaldesignalone,butby execution,verification,andaccountabilityunderregulatory scrutiny 2
US offshoresafetyperformanceisoftendiscussed throughoutcome-basedmetricssuchasfatalitiesormajor spills.Fromanoperationalriskperspective,however,a moreinformativeindicatoristhefrequencyofeventsthat signalstresswithinintegritysystems BSEE’sOffshore IncidentStatisticsforCalendarYear2023report375lifting incidentsand149fires,categoriesthatfrequently intersectwithequipmentcondition,proceduraldiscipline, andverificationquality(BSEE,2023) Althoughthesedata donotestablishrootcause,theyhighlightthe environmentinwhichmechanicalintegrityprogramsmust performcontinuously
Simultaneously,recordUS OilandGasproductionhas intensifiedoperationaldemands EIAdataconfirmthat risingoutputhasconcentratedactivityincoreoffshore andonshoreregions,increasingutilizationratesforlifting systems,pressurevessels,andmaterial-handling infrastructure(EIA,2025) Asutilizationincreases, tolerancefordegradation,deferredinspection,or incompletetestingdiminishessharply
Workforcedynamicsfurtherelevatetheimportanceof inspectionandcertificationexpertise TheUS Bureauof LaborStatistics(BLS)reportsamedianannualwageof $102,320formechanicalengineersasofMay2024,with employmentprojectedtogrow9percentfrom2024to 2034,andapproximately18,100jobopeningsexpected annuallyoverthedecade(US BureauofLaborStatistics [BLS],2024)
Whilethesefiguresdescribetheoccupationbroadly,they alsosignalagrowingpremiumonengineerswhopossess inspection-drivenexperience,roleswhereauditreadiness, documentationrigor,andengineeringjudgmentunder regulatoryoversightareascriticalastechnicalknowledge
US offshoresafetyregulationoperatesthroughahybrid frameworkthatcombinesprescriptiverequirements, performance-basedstandards,andenforcement mechanisms BSEE’scivilpenaltiesprogramillustrateshow integrityfailurestranslateintoregulatoryconsequences In itsFiscalYear2024CivilPenaltyPaidandClosedReport, BSEEdocumented17casesclosed,withtotalpaymentsof $1,951,137(BSEE,2024).Casesummariesincludeviolations associatedwithunsafeconditions,droppedobjects,and failurestomeetstructuralsurveyorsafetyrequirements, reinforcingthatmechanicalintegrityisanenforceable obligationratherthanadiscretionarypractice
Thisregulatoryenvironmentincreasesthestrategicvalue ofprofessionalscapableofoperatingcrediblyatthe intersectionofengineeringevidence,proceduralcontrol, documentationtraceability,andindependentverification
JeanCarlosQueirozCarvalho’scareeralignspreciselywith thisintersection Servinginindependentthird-party certificationroles,hehasissuedformalinspection certificates,conformityreports,andtechnical assessmentsforsafety-criticalliftingandpressure systems.Hisworkdemonstrateshowthird-party inspectionfunctionsasagovernancemechanism, separatingengineeringjudgmentfromoperational pressurewhileprovidingregulatorsandoperatorswith defensible,traceableevidenceofcompliance CASESTUDIESANDEXECUTIVEINSIGHTS
Jean’sprofessionalfoundationbeganinindustrial instrumentation,whereheperformedmaintenance, adjustment,andcalibrationofpressuregauges,switches, andtransmittersusingmetrology-traceablestandards Thisearlyexposureestablishedaprinciplethatwould shapehiscareer:mechanicalintegritydependson measurementintegrity Inaccurateinstrumentationcan normalizeunsafeconditionsuntiltheymanifestas incidents
Ashisresponsibilitiesexpanded,Jeanassumedroles combiningengineeringauthoritywithoperational leadership.AsaMechanicalEngineerandTechnical Manager,hecoordinatedteamsresponsiblefor maintenance,testing,andcalibrationofindustrialvalves andequipment,supervisedtechnicalprocedures,and designedcustomizedhydrostaticandpneumatictesting unitstomeetsite-specificriskprofiles
Hislaterworkinthird-partycertificationandheavy-lifting operationsplacedhimwithinoneofthehighest-risk domainsofOilandGasactivity AsanindependentThirdPartyCertificationInspector,Jeansupervisednondestructivetestingprograms,authorizedtesting procedures,certifiedhydrostaticpressuretestsofupto 15,000PSI,andissuedformalinspectionandcompliance documentationauthorizingequipmentforoperational release Thesefunctionsrepresentthefinalcontrolbarrier betweenengineeringassumptionsandreal-world exposure
Whyismechanicalintegrityconsideredthefoundation ofsafeOilandGasoperations?
Mechanicalintegritypreventslatentdegradationfrom becomingoperationalfailure.BSEE’s2023datareport hundredsofliftingincidentsandmorethanonehundred gasreleasesacrossoffshoreoperations,demonstrating howfrequentlysafety-criticalsystemsarestressed (BSEE,2023).Integrityisachievedthroughinspection frequency,testvalidity,documentationtraceability,and engineeringaccountability,notthroughstandardsalone
Howdoesthird-partycertificationreducesystemicrisk inoffshoreandonshoreenvironments?
Third-partycertificationseparatesengineeringjudgment fromproductionpressure Independentinspectorsbase decisionsonconformityevidence,testresults,and proceduralcomplianceratherthanscheduleurgency BSEE’senforcementandcivilpenaltyframeworkshows whythisindependencematters,becauseunsafe conditionsandverificationfailurescarryregulatory consequences(BSEE,2024)
Whatdifferentiatesinspectionengineeringfrom traditionalmechanicaldesignroles?
Designengineeringaddressesexpectedperformance underassumedconditions Inspectionengineering governsactualperformanceafterfatigue,corrosion, overloads,maintenancevariation,andhumanfactors haveactedontheequipment Inspectionengineersmust interpretnon-destructivetestingresults,calibration validity,andobserveddegradation,thenmakedecisions withdirectsafetyimplications
Canyouexplainthecomplexityofcertifyingheavyliftingoperationsexceeding1,000tons?
Atthatscale,smallerrorsinriggingconfiguration,load distribution,orinstrumentcalibrationcreate disproportionaterisk Certificationrequirescontrolled loadprogression,validatedmeasurementsystems, definedacceptancecriteria,andstrictprocedural enforcement BSEE’sreportingof375liftingincidentsin 2023highlightswhyliftingoperationsremainacritical riskcategory(BSEE,2023).
Howdopressure-systemfailurescascadeinto operationalandregulatorycrises?
Pressuresystemsconcentrateenergy.Whenintegrity fails,theoutcomeisrarelyisolated Itcantrigger shutdowns,investigations,correctiveactions,andcivil penalties BSEE’sFY2024civilpenaltydataillustratehow unsafeconditionstranslateintoformalenforcement actions(BSEE,2024)
Whatskillsaremostlackingintoday’sOilandGas engineeringworkforce?
Themostdifficultskillstoreplacearethosedeveloped throughrepeatedexposuretohigh-riskfieldexecution, proceduraldiscipline,documentationrigor,anddecisionmakingunderauditconditions WhileBLSprojections showstrongoveralldemandformechanicalengineers, inspectionandcertificationrolesrequireadditional competenciesthatarenotuniformlydevelopedearlyin careers(BLS,2024)
RecordUS energyproductionmagnifiestheimportanceof integrity-drivenoperations Whenoutputishigh,reliability dependsonpreventingsmallfailuresfromescalatinginto high-consequenceevents EIAdataconfirmingrecord energyandcrudeoilproductionin2024underscorehow dependentnationalenergysecurityisonsafe,continuous operations(EIA,2025)
Fromaworkforceperspective,thegreatestopportunitylies instrengtheningtheinspection,testing,andcertification pipeline Advancedtraininginnon-destructivetesting interpretation,calibrationtraceability,pressure-test governance,andheavy-liftverificationwillbeessential Regulatorscanreinforcetheseeffortsbyclarifying expectationsfordocumentationqualityandcorrectiveactiontimeliness,whileindustryleaderscanelevate certificationfromacompliancecosttoastrategicriskcontrolfunction.
Mechanicalintegrityisoftentreatedasatechnical subdiscipline,yetUS offshoredatademonstratethatit functionsmoreaccuratelyasanoperationalgovernance system In2023alone,BSEEreported375liftingincidents, 149fires,106gasreleases,and203injuriesacrossoffshore OilandGasoperations,figuresthatdefinethescaleof exposureintegrityprogramsmustmanagecontinuously (BSEE,2023) Safetyperformancedependsnoton assumptionsofreliability,butondisciplinedverification.
JeanCarlosQueirozCarvalho’scareerillustrateswhat effectiveintegritygovernancelookslikeunderreal operationalconstraints.
Hisworkspansmetrology-traceablecalibrationsystems, hydrostaticpressuretestingupto15,000PSI,oversightof non-destructivetesting,andheavy-liftingcertification throughfull-scaleloadtestingexceeding1,000tons Ina US contextwhereenergyproductionreachedrecord levelsin2024andsafetyoversightremainsenforcementbacked,mechanicalintegrityisnotmerelyacompliance exercise,itistheenablingconditionforreliabilityatscale (BSEE,2024;BLS,2024;EIA,2025)
Forexecutives,theimplicationisclear,integritymustbe managedthroughleadingindicatorssuchasinspection closurediscipline,instrumenttraceability,test governance,andcertificationrigor Forpolicymakers,the workforceimplicationisequallyconcrete.SustainingU.S. energysafetyandcontinuityrequiressustained investmentininspectionandcertificationtalent,because thecredibilityofregulationultimatelydependsonthe qualityofverificationperformedinthefield.
BureauofSafetyandEnvironmentalEnforcement.(2023). Offshoreincidentstatistics:Calendaryear2023 US DepartmentoftheInterior https://wwwbseegov/statsfacts/offshore-incident-statistics
BureauofSafetyandEnvironmentalEnforcement (2024) Fiscalyear2024civilpenaltypaidandclosedreport US DepartmentoftheInterior https://wwwbseegov/sites/bseegov/files/202508/FY%202024%20Civil%20Penalty%20Paid%20and%2 0Closed%20Reportpdf
US BureauofLaborStatistics (2024) Mechanical engineers:Occupationaloutlookhandbook US DepartmentofLabor https://wwwblsgov/ooh/architecture-andengineering/mechanical-engineershtm
US EnergyInformationAdministration (2025,January) In 2024,theUnitedStatesproducedmoreenergythanever before US DepartmentofEnergy https://wwweiagov/todayinenergy/detailphp?id=65445
