Software Manual

For IncidentXP 8.2

Revision 14 (12-Oct-2016)

Please note that this documentation is preliminary and subject to change without notice. The latest version of this
document can be obtained via CGE (email support@[Link]) or via an IncidentXP Value Added Reseller.
Copyright
© IP Bank B.V. 2004-2016. BowTieXP, IncidentXP and AuditXP are registered trademarks. Subject to change without
notice. All rights reserved.

BSCAT (Barrier based Systemic Cause Analysis Technique) is property of Det Norske Veritas Ltd. and copyright ©
2011 Det Norske Veritas Ltd. BSCAT is a registered trademark of DNV. The BSCAT method manual is copyright ©
2011 Det Norske Veritas Ltd. All other trademarks and brands are the property of their respective owners.

The Tripod Beta manual ‘Tripod Beta: Guidance on using Tripod Beta in the investigation and analysis of incidents,
accidents and business losses’ is copyright © 2014 of the Stichting Tripod Foundation, and published by the Energy
Institute. The Stichting Tripod Foundation ‘Tripod’ logo is registered trademark of the Stichting Tripod Foundation.

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Table of Contents
1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................ 5
1.1. Purpose of this document .................................................................................................................................. 5
1.2. Structure of this document ................................................................................................................................ 5
2 Quick installation guide............................................................................................................................................... 6
2.1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................ 6
2.2. Installing IncidentXP ........................................................................................................................................... 6
2.3. Activating IncidentXP .......................................................................................................................................... 6
3 Quick getting started guide ......................................................................................................................................... 9
3.1. The IncidentXP screen ........................................................................................................................................ 9
3.2. Creating an incident & incident analysis diagram ............................................................................................ 12
3.3. Creating a timeline ........................................................................................................................................... 13
4 The BSCAT method ................................................................................................................................................... 18
4.1. A brief description of BSCAT methodology ...................................................................................................... 18
4.2. Creating a BSCAT diagram ................................................................................................................................ 20
4.3. Add a BSCAT event ........................................................................................................................................... 20
4.4. Add a BSCAT incident barrier ............................................................................................................................ 23
4.5. Add a BSCAT causation assessment.................................................................................................................. 24
4.6. The Connector .................................................................................................................................................. 26
4.7. Edit the BSCAT diagram .................................................................................................................................... 26
5 The Tripod Beta method ........................................................................................................................................... 27
5.1. A brief description of Tripod Beta methodology .............................................................................................. 27
5.2. Creating a Tripod Beta diagram ........................................................................................................................ 28
5.3. Add a Tripod trio (Event – Agent – Object) ....................................................................................................... 29
5.4. Add a Tripod Beta incident barrier ................................................................................................................... 32
5.5. Add a Tripod Beta causation assessment ......................................................................................................... 33
5.6. The Connector .................................................................................................................................................. 36
5.7. Editing your Tripod Beta diagram ..................................................................................................................... 37
6 The Barrier Failure Analysis (BFA) method ............................................................................................................... 38
6.1. A brief description of BFA methodology........................................................................................................... 38
6.2. Creating a BFA diagram .................................................................................................................................... 38
6.3. Add a BFA event ............................................................................................................................................... 39
6.4. Add a BFA incident barrier ................................................................................................................................ 41
6.5. Add a BFA causation assessment...................................................................................................................... 43
6.6. The Connector .................................................................................................................................................. 45
6.7. Edit the BFA diagram ........................................................................................................................................ 45
7 The Root Cause Analysis (RCA) method .................................................................................................................... 46
7.1. A brief description of RCA methodology .......................................................................................................... 46
7.2. Creating an RCA diagram .................................................................................................................................. 46
7.3. Add an RCA event ............................................................................................................................................. 47
7.4. The Connector .................................................................................................................................................. 49
7.5. Edit the RCA diagram ........................................................................................................................................ 49
7.6. Link RCA event to equivalent incident diagram ................................................................................................ 50
8 Actions / recommendations ...................................................................................................................................... 52
8.1. Actions as a TODO list ....................................................................................................................................... 52
8.2. Actions as recommendations ........................................................................................................................... 52
8.3. Adding an action ............................................................................................................................................... 53
8.4. Visualizing actions ............................................................................................................................................ 55
8.5. Action reports ................................................................................................................................................... 56
9 Linking incidents with bowtie ................................................................................................................................... 57
9.1. Creating a bowtie templated incident analysis diagram .................................................................................. 58
9.2. Linking incident analysis elements to bowtie diagrams ................................................................................... 59
9.3. Visualizing incident analysis data on the bowtie diagram ................................................................................ 61
10 Configuring the diagram ......................................................................................................................................... 65
10.1. Changing display settings for a single type of item ........................................................................................ 65
10.2. Changing display settings for the whole diagram ........................................................................................... 66
10.3. Adjusting lookup tables .................................................................................................................................. 69

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 10.4. Layout grid ...................................................................................................................................................... 71
11 Case file tools .......................................................................................................................................................... 73
11.1. Listview window.............................................................................................................................................. 73
11.2. Quality checks window ................................................................................................................................... 73
11.3. Case overview ................................................................................................................................................. 74
12 Linking to documentation ....................................................................................................................................... 76
12.1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 76
12.2. Creating a document link ................................................................................................................................ 76
12.3. Linking a document link to the diagram .......................................................................................................... 78
13 Getting data out of the program ............................................................................................................................. 79
13.1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 79
13.2. Reporting ........................................................................................................................................................ 79
13.3. Export of diagrams .......................................................................................................................................... 80
14 A brief description of a subset of bowtie methodology .......................................................................................... 81
14.1. Hazard ............................................................................................................................................................. 81
14.2. Top event ........................................................................................................................................................ 81
14.3. Threats ............................................................................................................................................................ 81
14.4. Consequences ................................................................................................................................................. 82
14.5. Barriers (also known as controls) .................................................................................................................... 82
14.6. Escalation factors/defeating factors/barrier decay mechanisms.................................................................... 82
14.7. Terminology recap .......................................................................................................................................... 82
15 Support .................................................................................................................................................................... 83
15.1. Helpdesk ......................................................................................................................................................... 83
15.2. Software training ............................................................................................................................................ 83
15.3. BSCAT method training ................................................................................................................................... 83
15.4. Tripod Beta method training ........................................................................................................................... 83

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 Introduction
1
1.1. Purpose of this document
The purpose of this software manual is to provide an explanation of the IncidentXP software tool, which supports
both DNV-GL’s BSCAT technique for incident investigation as well as the Tripod Beta technique for incident analysis.
It assumes basic familiarity with accident and incident investigation methods.

For BSCAT: This manual combined with the DNV-GL BSCAT Method Manual should be sufficient for experienced
investigators to use the method and software successfully.

For Tripod: Familiarity, or preferably being an accredited Tripod professional, along with this manual, should be
enough to get you going with the software.

For BFA & RCA: This manual should be sufficient for experienced investigators to use software successfully.

Training courses in BSCAT and Tripod Beta are available in the market. Customized training for the BSCAT method is
available through DNV-GL ([Link]). Training for Tripod Beta is available through various parties such as
AdviSafe ([Link]). For training in BFA, please contact CGE Risk at via support@[Link].

1.2. Structure of this document

1. Step by step guides to get you started:
 Chapter 2, Quick installation guide on page 6. This guide quickly describes how to install and activate
IncidentXP on your computer.
 Chapter 3, Quick getting started guide on page 9. This guide briefly discusses how to start creating a
incident analysis diagram. Also the timeline is discussed in this chapter.

2. The four incident methodologies available in IncidentXP:

 Chapter 4, The BSCAT method on page 18.
 Chapter 5, The Tripod Beta method on page 27.
 Chapter 6, The Barrier Failure Analysis (BFA) method on page 38.
 Chapter 7, The Root Cause Analysis (RCA) method on page 46.

3. Recommendations and feedback to bowtie risk assessment:

 Chapter 8, Actions / recommendations on page 52.
 Chapter 9, Linking incidents with bowtie on page 57.

4. Advanced functionality; Display settings, document links, export of data and bowtie methodology description:
 Chapter 10, Configuring the diagram on page 65.
 Chapter 11, Case file tools on page 73.
 Chapter 12, Linking to documentation on page 76.
 Chapter 13, Getting data out of the program on page 79.
 Chapter 14, A brief description of a subset of bowtie methodology on page 81.

5. Support options:
 Chapter 15, Support on page 83.

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 Quick installation guide
2
In this chapter we will walk you through the steps to
install IncidentXP.

2.1. Introduction
Installing IncidentXP onto your computer is very simple. If however, you run into trouble and want to have more
detailed information about the installation procedure, about the software prerequisites and compatibility, then this
information is available in the full software manual (the BowTieXP software manual).

Note: BowTieXP and IncidentXP are the same product, your license key will determine which you get to see:
 IncidentXP,
 BowTieXP
 Or both.
This is the reason why you will download the software from the BowTieXP downloads site.

2.2. Installing IncidentXP

NOTE for people on Windows XP and Vista: IncidentXP needs the .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 to be installed.
Windows 7 and later come with the .NET Framework version 3.5 SP1 already installed out of the box, or
will detect the need and install automatically. On Windows Vista, you need to do this manually, if it is not
yet installed. Please download and run the installer:

[Link]

Open an internet browser and navigate to:

[Link]

Download and run the BowTieXP installer (.msi).

2.3. Activating IncidentXP

When you start IncidentXP for the first time, you are asked for either a trial code or an activation code:

Figure 1 - Activation dialog

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If you have a valid trial code, you can enter that in the activation or trial code text box, and IncidentXP will run.

If you have purchased IncidentXP, you will need to obtain an activation code to perpetually activate IncidentXP.
Please copy the code shown in the current host ID text box and paste it into an email to CGE at
support@[Link]. We will then send you an activation code. After entering this code in the activation or trial
code text box, IncidentXP will run forever.

2.3.1. Activating with an old host-id

Sometimes, due to the use of a laptop docking station, a switch in Windows version or changes in the computer
hardware, it can happen that the host ID changes. If that happens, your activation code will no longer match with
the host ID. If this happens, you will have to activate the software based on the original host-ID (the original host-ID
that was used for creation of the activation code, the one you sent to CGE).

To do so, select the “Lock to this computer with an old host id” option from the “Lock to” dropdown menu in the
Product Activation screen (see Figure 2). The screen will then display the current, as well as the activated host-id
(the one you sent to us initially) (see Figure 3).

Figure 2 - Activate with original host id

Figure 3 – Host id and activation code do not match anymore

We do not need to send you a new code. You just need to tell it the host id which belongs to the activation code.
You can do this by copy/pasting the old host id which was used to generate the activation code into the “Activated
host id” field. The host id that was used to generate the activation code is always included in the same email as the
activation code, usually in a bit of text that looks like Figure 4:

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 Figure 4 - Activation code email message

The host-id that was used to generate the activation code is the one pointed out by the arrow in Figure 4. When this
host-id is copied into the “Activated host id’ field, the software will pick it up and the match it to the activation
code. This should result in an accepted code, returning the status “OK”. Now click the OK button, and the software
should be activated once more.

Please note that IncidentXP will check what has changed on your computer. If too many parts have changed, or you
are trying this on a different computer, the code will still not work and you will need to contact us for an updated
code.

Figure 5 – Changed host-id

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 Quick getting started guide
3
3.1. The IncidentXP screen
After starting IncidentXP, the following screen will appear:

Figure 6 - Main application screen

This screen consists of several parts that you will need to familiarize yourself with before you will be able to start
building analysis diagrams.

Along the top we find the menu bar and the toolbar.

Figure 7 - Menu bar & toolbar

Below those we have the diagram and the treeview.

3.1.1. The diagram

The biggest portion of the screen is taken up by the diagram.

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 Figure 8 - Diagram window

The diagram window is where the visual portion of your diagram will take shape, think of the diagram window as
your drawing board.

The diagram can show the timeline of an incident, the incident analysis diagram, or both. The analysis diagram can
be either a BSCAT, Tripod, BFA or RCA diagram.

3.1.2. The treeview

The treeview is normally located on the left-hand side of the screen. This can be adjusted if you would like. The
treeview displays all the information present in your case file and helps you easily navigate through your file.

Figure 9 - Treeview window

In this window you have access to all information in your file, such as of course the incidents, but also reference
information such as
 The incident categorizations such as types and tiers,
 Other reference information such as document links and
 Method-specific reference information such as the BSCAT chart items or Tripod BRF lists.

3.1.3. The editor

In the editor window you can submit and edit all written content within your diagram.

When you want to add a new item, you enter the item’s details into this window. When you want to change an
item, you also have to do it in this window.

By double clicking items in the treeview or in the diagram, the editor window will appear which allows you to edit
the various fields of an item.

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 Figure 10 - Edit window for an event

Along the top we have different tabs. The leftmost one is called ‘Editor’ and this is where we have all the fields
which are available on the item. In the example we are looking at an event which, amongst other properties, has a
name and a description.

The next tab is called ‘User Data’ and it is where we can define our own fields, if so required. Please see the
BowTieXP software manual for more information regarding this tab.

The tab ‘Document Links’ will be discussed in chapter 12 Linking to documentation.

Some tips if you get lost:

1. Pressing F2 will bring up the editor window for the selected item.

2. The windows can be moved around. Pressing Ctrl + Shift + F12 restores all windows to their default
location – the layout as seen in the screenshots is restored.

3. If you can’t find your diagram, you either have not selected an incident, or you have selected a
different tab such as the case overview tab instead of the diagram tab.

3.1.4. Add and remove buttons

The software allows you to remove buttons from the toolbar and only display the buttons you frequently use. Also
in the default software settings some buttons will be hided.

You can remove (hide) or add buttons from/to the toolbar by clicking on the tiny buttons with tree small dots and
an arrow on it.

Figure 11 - Add or remove buttons from the toolbar (1/2)

Check the toolbar buttons that you want to visualize in the toolbar and uncheck the buttons that should be hided.

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 Figure 12 - Add or remove buttons from the toolbar (2/2)

3.2. Creating an incident & incident analysis diagram

When IncidentXP has just started, it automatically creates a blank file for you and also creates a new incident
diagram in that file, so you can get started on the diagrams immediately.

Note: The way IncidentXP works with files is very similar to how you open and save files in Microsoft
Word. Similarly you are able to attach your case files to your e-mail messages, transfer them to an USB
stick, etc.

To create a new incident in the software, right-click the incidents node in the treeview and subsequently select
‘New Incident’. The editor will pop up allowing you to specify the name, date, incident type, category and tier. In
this window you should also decide which analysis method you want to use.

Note: Depending on which methods are activated/licensed in the software, you will be offered a choice of
method. If only one method is activated, that method is automatically selected.

Figure 13 - Adding a new incident diagram in the treeview

After creating the new incident, the treeview presents us one or multiple empty diagrams underneath the incident
node. These diagrams can be either incident analysis diagrams or timeline diagrams.

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 Figure 14 - An incident node which contains a Timeline diagram and BFA diagram

We will first start on how to create the timeline, and then in separate chapters, discuss creation of BSCAT diagrams,
Tripod Beta diagrams, BFA diagrams and RCA diagrams.

3.3. Creating a timeline

The timeline allows you to enter all evidence/events and visually reorder them to fit your findings.

When the timeline is selected when an incident is created, the software automatically creates a start of a timeline
diagram, so you can get started on the timeline diagram immediately.

Figure 15 - Default start of timeline

To add a timeline diagram to an existing incident, right-click an incident in the treeview and select ‘New Incident
Diagram’. In this window you will also be able to select the ‘Diagram Status’, this refers to functionality in
BowTieServer and you can choose to ignore this when you are not using BowTieServer. You can filter out the data of
draft incident diagrams on BowTie diagrams by means of the incident filter when using IncidentXP in combination
with BowTieXP. It is also possible to create a new timeline diagram by right-clicking the incident node and selecting
‘New Incident…’

Select methodology ‘Timeline’ in the add incident diagram dialog and give the timeline a name.

Figure 16 - Add new timeline to existing incident

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3.3.1. Add a timeline column
To add a new timeline column move your mouse over the right or left side of an existing timeline column and click
the green plus button which appears.

Figure 17 - Add timeline column

Select a date and time and decide in which format you want to display this date and time and subsequently select
‘OK’ to add the column. A qualitative date and time can optionally be inserted to highlight an particular moment
with a qualitative description.

Figure 18 - Add timeline column

Another way of adding a timeline column is to drag an existing timeline column to the right or left side of the
diagram.

Note: A red exclamation mark will appear when timeline columns are not in chronological order.

Figure 19 - Exclamation mark in the timeline

3.3.2. Add a timeline actor

Note: The term actor can refer to a person but also to an item, machine, system or other item which can
cause actions (or influence the flow of events).

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To add a new timeline actor move your mouse over the top (or bottom) of an existing timeline actor and click the
green plus button that appears.

Add a name in the timeline actor editor and click ‘OK’.

Figure 20 - Add a timeline actor

3.3.3. Add a timeline event

To add a new timeline event move your mouse over one of the cells (where the time column and the actor row
cross each other) and click the green plus button.

Figure 21 - Add a new timeline event

The timeline event editor will pop up allowing you to specify the name, description, actor, location, category and
confidence level.

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 Figure 22 - Add a timeline event

Note: There will be a new actor row added to the timeline diagram when a new actor is created in the

timeline event editor. An actor can be added in the timeline event editor by selecting this icon

Here is how our example timeline event looks when we click ‘OK’:

3.3.4. Edit timeline

We can open the editor of the time column, actor row or event by double clicking them.

We can also drag timeline events around the diagram. Dropping it onto a different cell will modify the time and
actor to match the location where it was dropped.

Here’s an example of a timeline:

Figure 23 - Example of a timeline

Unused actors will be hided from the diagram by clicking this button in the toolbar. If you cannot find this
button in the toolbar you have to add it first to the toolbar using the ‘add or remove buttons’:

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Figure 24 - Add or remove buttons from the toolbar

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 The BSCAT method
4
4.1. A brief description of BSCAT methodology
Note: Refer to DNV-GL’s BSCAT method manual for a more thorough elaboration.

4.1.1. Introduction
The BSCAT method refers to a method that links modern risk–based safety management approaches to systematic
cause analysis (SCAT) incident investigation. The “B” refers to barrier–based as each barrier identified in bowtie risk
assessments is tested for why it failed.

SCAT is Systematic Cause Analysis Technique, a well-established root cause analysis approach which incorporates
the DNV-GL loss causation model. The model is a sequence of dominos establishing the hierarchy of accident
progression from the immediate cause back to fundamental root causes and system failures.

In short - BSCAT is the barrier based extension to DNV-GL’s SCAT method.

The SCAT model (Systematic Cause Analysis Technique) was developed to help incident investigators apply the DNV-
GL loss causation model to actual events. This is done by means of the SCAT chart. The chart was created to build–
out an event using standardized event descriptions that can fit the whole range of incidents and near misses. Due to
using a standardized list, incident analyses are suitable to aggregation, leading to more insight into the weak areas
of your safety management system.

A barrier-based accident investigation still applies the SCAT model but now it is applied to each barrier separately,
not to the incident as a whole.

The BSCAT chart is the latest update of the SCAT approach. It includes all the historical occupational safety topics
and underlying causes, but has added process risks to the list (e.g. fires and explosions) and in general more suitable
to barrier analysis.

Figure 25 - Difference between SCAT and BSCAT

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4.1.2. BSCAT work process
The figure below outlines the main steps in a BSCAT accident investigation.

Figure 26 - BSCAT accident investigation overview

The BSCAT phase consists of the following steps.

1. Evidence is collected and preserved.

Evidence collection is done offline (not in the software).

2. A timeline/storyboard of events is built. At its simplest, a timeline is a listing of all relevant events or
factors in a time-based sequence. Simple incidents may not require a timeline, but this tool often helps
understand complex incidents involving many people, different systems, and how latent issues (such as
design or construction deficiencies or unrevealed failures) affect the outcome.

As already seen, the software supports building the timeline in a user-friendly manner. See section 3.3, Creating a
timeline on page 13.

3. After creating the timeline, key events are identified and placed in an event flow diagram.

The software supports building these diagrams in two manners – in the completely free form, but also using pro-
active bowtie risk analysis as a source for event flow information – this is known as building a templated BSCAT
diagram.

For free-form building of a BSCAT diagram, see section 4.2, Creating a BSCAT diagram on page 20.
For templated building of a BSCAT diagram, see section 9, Linking incidents with bowtie on page 57.

4. Barriers are identified and inserted between the key events.

5. Barriers are analyzed (which have failed? How? Which were missing?).
6. A BSCAT analysis is done on each barrier.

See sections 4.3 and further, starting on page 20.

Steps two to five are repeated for each hypothesis about the accident causation.

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 7. Finally a report is generated.

The BSCAT tool supports many different reports and output methods to provide you with all information needed to
create a full report. See section 13, Getting data out of the program on page 79.

Optionally, the barriers identified in the investigation can be linked to barriers on pro-active bowtie risk analyses to
provide aggregation and insight into how both relate. If applicable bowties do not (yet) exist they can be built
(provided you have a BSCAT IncidentXP + BowTieXP license). For linking incidents with bowtie risk analysis, see
section 9, Linking incidents with bowtie on page 57.

4.2. Creating a BSCAT diagram

The BSCAT diagram consists of events, which are connected with connectors. To start a diagram we must start with
a single event.

When the BSCAT method is selected when an incident is created (see section 3.1.4, Creating an incident & incident
analysis diagram on page 11), the software automatically creates the first event of a BSCAT diagram, so you can get
started on the BSCAT diagram immediately.

Figure 27 - Default start of BSCAT

To create a new BSCAT diagram, you have to right-click the incident node and select ‘New Incident’. Select the
BSCAT methodology in the add incident diagram dialog and give the diagram a name.

Figure 28 – Creating a new BSCAT diagram

4.3. Add a BSCAT event

Note: It is also possible to add BSCAT events by selecting events (top event, threats, or consequences)
from a bowtie diagram. In section 9, Linking incidents with bowtie on page 57 you can read how to do this.

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To add a new BSCAT event hover your mouse over the right or left side of an existing BSCAT event and click the
green plus button that appears. The left plus button will add an incoming event (a previous event leading to this
one). The right plus button will add an outgoing event (an event which happened after this one).

Figure 29 - Add a new BSCAT event

Give the BSCAT event a name and decide about the appearance of the event – it can be shown as a normal event, a
threat, a consequence, a top event as well as a potential event (one which did not happen, but could have).

Figure 30 - BSCAT event editor

Here are the different appearance options for the events:

These appearance options are to differentiate what kind of event it is. The first event (red) is the default BSCAT
event appearance. The next three events are used in the bowtie theory. The last is self-explanatory.

The event is added to the diagram after clicking OK:

Figure 31 - Added BSCAT event

We can reposition the events by dragging them around the diagram. A grid will be shown while we are dragging,
indicating where we can drop it. The shapes will snap to the grid. This is called the assisted layout and is used by
BSCAT diagrams by default. There is also a free grid layout. This means that the diagram shapes can freely be
distributed across the diagram space. To change the layout grid, please see section 10.4 Layout grid on page 71.

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4.3.1. Add a BSCAT event between two events
To add an event in between the two events, we must first make a bit of room in case the events are placed in a
close proximity of each other. To create space between events, drag the rightmost event one slot to the right.

Figure 32 - Creating space between events

When we move the mouse over the connector, we see another green plus button. If we click it, we can add an
event to the connector. The editor pops up and we can enter the details of the event.

Figure 33 - Add an event between of two events

Note: It is also possible to add BSCAT events by selecting events (top event, threats, or consequences)
from a bowtie diagram. In section 9, Linking incidents with bowtie on page 57 you can read how to do this

4.3.2. Add a BSCAT event in parallel to another event

When one event results into multiple events, we need to add events in parallel. Move the mouse over the right side
of the (first) event, and a green plus button will appear. When we click this plus button, we can add an event
parallel to the other event. The editor pops up and we can enter the details of the event.

Figure 34 - Add an event in parallel to another event

The result will look like this:

Figure 35 - A parallel BSCAT event

Of course the same can be done if multiple events resulting in one event.

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4.4. Add a BSCAT incident barrier
To add an incident barrier in between two events, we must first make a bit of room. Drag the rightmost event one
slot to the right, please see Figure 32. When we move the mouse over the connector, we see a green plus button. If
we click it, we can add a barrier to the connector.

Figure 36 - Add an incident barrier

Apart from the name, we can enter a description, barrier type, enter how the barrier failed, both in a short
description and in a longer multiline format, as well as choose the barrier state – also known as the failure state:
failed, missing, unreliable, inadequate or effective. We can enter the barrier challenge and response in the ‘Barrier
Challenge/Barrier Response’ tab. Also we can add information in a tab called ‘User Data’ and it is where we can
define our own fields, if so required. Please see the BowTieXP software manual for more information regarding this
tab. More information regarding the ‘Document Links’ tab is available in chapter 12 Linking to documentation.

Figure 37 - Incident barrier editor

The incident barrier states are drawn on the diagram as follows:

Figure 38 - Incident barrier states

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Using these methods we can quickly build complex diagrams such as:

Figure 39 - Example BSCAT diagram (1/2)

Or:

Figure 40 - Example BSCAT diagram (2/2)

4.5. Add a BSCAT causation assessment

Once the diagram has been completed we need to assess all the barriers using the BSCAT method.

To add a new BSCAT causation move your mouse over the bottom of an existing BSCAT incident barrier and click the
green plus button that appears.

Figure 41 - Add new BSCAT causation

The BSCAT causation editor will allow you to do three things:

 Add a description of the immediate cause, basic cause and management system factor.
 Assign BSCAT chart values to the immediate cause, basic cause and management system factor.
 Add document links or user data to the barrier.

Some users like to add both the descriptions and assign the BSCAT chart values, other users choose one of these
two options.

The editor tab in the BSCAT causation editor window allows you to add a description of the immediate cause, basic
cause and management system factor, as well as indicate what particular kind of inadequacy of the management
system lead to this barrier failure.

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 Figure 42 - Add descriptions in the BSCAT causation editor

The BSCAT Immediate causes, BSCAT Basic causes and BSCAT Management System Factors tabs in the BSCAT
causation editor allow you to assign the BSCAT chart values. Select one of these tabs and move the applicable
BSCAT chart value from the left to the right window:

Figure 43 - Link BSCAT chart to the BSCAT causation

Note #1: If you want to add a second BSCAT causation to the same incident barrier, right click the incident
barrier and choose Add  BSCAT causation.

Note #2: the Expand/Collapse buttons and the Filter are useful features in the ediot window to quickly
find the chart values you are looking for.

Note #3: the BSCAT chart values can also be assigned to an incident barrier by dragging and dropping
them from the treeview.

4.5.1. BSCAT chart in the treeview

The entire BSCAT chart with all three level cause categorizations is included in the case file. If we take a look at the
treeview, and open up the BSCAT incident lookup tables node, we will find the BSCAT charts:

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 Figure 44 - BSCAT chart in the treeview

4.6. The Connector

The incident connector is the line which connects incident events. To add a new connector move your mouse over
the right or left side of an existing BSCAT event and click the green plus button that appears. Choose ‘Add new
Connector’, and select the event to which the connector should be connected to.

Figure 45 - Add new connector

4.7. Edit the BSCAT diagram

We will list methods of editing the diagram here for completeness:
 To edit a shape, double click it or select it and press F2.
 To change to order of barriers, drag them left or right beyond its neighbor.
 It is possible to copy (CTRL+C) and paste (CTRL+V) shapes with the clipboard.
 To copy some properties, Use paste special. This allows you to select which items to paste over the
selection.
 To remove an item, select it and press DEL.
 To move items, select it, right-click it and select cut. Click the destination and select paste.

Note: The layout engine in the BSCAT software has been optimized for BSCAT diagrams – diagrams with a
limited number of parallel paths. If you attempt to create for instance a fault tree or event tree type
diagrams, you will quickly run into the limitations of the automatic layout function.

Breaking the move of items you want to accomplish into separate steps will alleviate this problem. With
separate steps we mean more than one drag and drop operation. Instead of trying to move an item
immediately to the wanted end position, do it in smaller steps. E.g. first move it left, and then move it up.
This also helps you understand what the layout engine is trying to do and make the system work for you,
instead of against you.

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 The Tripod Beta method
5
5.1. A brief description of Tripod Beta methodology
Note: Please see Stichting Tripod Foundation’s Tripod Beta User Guide for more thorough elaboration.

5.1.1. Introduction
Developed in the early 1990s, Tripod Beta is an incident investigation methodology designed in line with the human
behavior model. It was explicitly created to help accident investigators model incidents in a way that allows them
to understand the influencing environment and uncover the root organizational deficiencies that allowed that
incident to happen.

Using Tripod Beta, incident investigators model incidents in terms of:

 Objects (something acted upon, such as a flammable substance or a piece of equipment),
 Agent of change (something –often an energy- that acts upon objects, such as a person or a fire) and
 Events (the result of an agent acting upon an object, such as an explosion).
Working back from the 'main event' (the incident) allows us to fully understand what happened and how an
incident happened.

A set of shapes consisting of an agent, an object and an event is called a trio and is the basic building block of the
Tripod beta method. Events themselves can also be objects or agents, allowing us to chain these trios into a large
diagram.

To understand why the incident happened, the next step is to determine what barriers were in place to prevent
those objects and agents acting in the way they did and why they failed. Tripod Beta teaches us to look at the
immediate causes of the act that led to the incident, the psychological precursors to that, and ultimately the
underlying organizational deficiencies that allowed those precursors to exist.

Figure 46 - A sample Tripod Beta diagram1

1 Source: Stichting Tripod Foundation.

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5.1.2. Tripod Beta analysis work process
Doing Tripod Beta analysis consists of the following steps.

1. Evidence is collected and preserved.

Evidence collection is done offline (not in the software).

2. A timeline/storyboard of events is built. At its simplest, a timeline is a listing of all relevant events or
factors in a time-based sequence. Simple incidents may not require a timeline, but this tool often helps
understand complex incidents involving many people, different systems, and how latent issues (such as
design or construction deficiencies or unrevealed failures) affect the outcome.

As already seen, the software supports building the timeline in a user-friendly manner. See section 3.3, Creating a
timeline on page 13.

3. After creating the timeline, the trio’s (agent, object, and event) are identified and linked to each other
creating an event flow diagram. Linking an event to an agent results in a combined node called ‘event-
agent’. Linking an event to an object results in a combined node called ‘event-object’.

The software supports building these diagrams in two manners – in the completely free form, but also using pro-
active bowtie risk analysis as a source for event flow information – this is known as building a templated Tripod Beta
diagram.

For free-form building of a Tripod Beta diagram, see section 5.2, Creating a Tripod Beta diagram on page 28 and
section 5.3 Add a Tripod trio (Event – Agent – Object) on page 29.
For templated building of a Tripod Beta diagram, see section 9, Linking incidents with bowtie on page 57.

4. Barriers are identified and inserted between the event and agent or object.

See section 5.4 Add a Tripod Beta incident barrier on page 32.

5. Barriers are analyzed (which have failed? And how? Which were missing?).

Please Stichting Tripod Foundation’s Tripod Beta User Guide for a thorough elaboration

6. A Tripod Beta causation assessment is done on each barrier.

See section 5.5, Add a Tripod Beta causation assessment on page 33.

7. Finally a report is generated.

The Tripod Beta tool supports many different reports and output methods to provide you with all information
needed to create a full report. See section 13, Getting data out of the program on page 79.

Optionally, the barriers identified in the investigation can be linked to barriers on pro-active bowtie risk analyses to
provide aggregation and insight into how both relate. If applicable bowties do not (yet) exist they can be built
(provided you have a Tripod IncidentXP + BowTieXP license). For templated building of a Tripod Beta diagram, see
section 9, Linking incidents with bowtie on page 57.

5.2. Creating a Tripod Beta diagram

Note: The Tripod Beta diagrams shown in this manual may slightly deviate from the Tripod Beta rules
which are set by the Stichting Tripod Foundation. These differences may especially occur in the
description of barriers. This manual will often use the bowtie risk assessment rules for describing barriers.

The Tripod diagram consists of events, agents and objects, which are connected with connectors. To start a diagram
we must start with a single event.

To create a new Tripod Beta diagram, right-click the incident node in the treeview and select ‘New Incident’. Name
the Tripod diagram and select methodology ‘Tripod Beta’.

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 Figure 47 – Creating a new Tripod diagram

When the method ‘Tripod Beta’ is selected when an incident is created (see section 3.1.4, Creating an incident &
incident analysis diagram on page 11), the software automatically creates the first event of a Tripod diagram, so you
can get started on the Tripod diagram immediately.

Figure 48 - Default start of Tripod Beta

5.3. Add a Tripod trio (Event – Agent – Object)

To add a new Tripod trio or single event, move your mouse over the left side of an existing Tripod event and click
the green plus button that appears. The left plus button will allow you to add a tripod trio (Agent & Object) or a
single incoming event (a previous event leading to this one). The right plus button will add an outgoing event (an
event which happened after this one).

Figure 49 - Add a new Tripod trio

When we select Add Agent & Object the trio is added to the diagram:

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 Figure 50- Added Tripod trio

Double click the Agent and Object to open the editor and edit the ‘Name’:

Figure 51 - Tripod event editor

This dialog also allows you to change the appearance – it can be shown as Agent, Object, Event, Event-Agent, Event-
Object as well as a Potential event (one which did not happen, but could have). There is also a possibility to refer in
the appearance to bowtie appearances: Threat, Consequence, and Top event. Please refer to chapter 14,
A brief description of a subset of bowtie methodology on page 81 for details.

These are the possible Tripod Beta appearances:

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Creating a Tripod-Beta incident analysis diagram is an iterative process, so we can reposition the events by dragging
them around the diagram. By default, Tripod-Beta diagrams uses a free layout grid. A grid will be shown while we
are dragging. The free layout allows the user with control over the layout of the diagram. This means that the
diagram shapes can be freely distributed on the diagram space by simply moving them or with cutting and pasting
movements. In this way, Tripod diagrams can easily be rearranged. To change the layout grid, please see section
10.4 Layout grid on page 71.

5.3.1. Add a Tripod Object in parallel to an existing trio

When a Tripod trio has two objects we need to add an object in parallel to an existing object. Move the mouse over
the left side of the event, and a green plus button will appear. When we click this plus button, we can add a
(second) object by adding a new element. The editor is pops up and we can enter the details of the object and
change the appearance.

Figure 52 - Add an event in parallel to another event

Note: the newly added element(s) might be placed over existing element(s). Use the free layout to drag
and drop the elements to the preferred position.

After dragging and dropping the element to the preferred position, the result can look like this:

Figure 53 –A second object added

Note: It is also possible to add Tripod elements by selecting events (top event, threats, or consequences)
from a bowtie diagram. In section 9, Linking incidents with bowtie on page 57 you can read how to do this.

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5.4. Add a Tripod Beta incident barrier
To add a barrier in between the two events, we must first make a bit of room in case the events are placed in a
close proximity of each other. To create space between events, drag the rightmost event to the right.

Figure 54 - Creating space between elements

When we move the mouse over the connector, we see a green plus button. If we click it, we can add a barrier to the
connector.

Figure 55 - Add an incident barrier

Apart from the name, we can enter a description, barrier type, enter how the barrier failed, both in a short
description and in a longer multiline format, as well as choose the barrier state – also known as the failure state:
failed, missing, unreliable, inadequate or effective. We can enter the barrier challenge and response in the ‘Barrier
Challenge/Barrier Response’ tab. Also we can add information in a tab called ‘User Data’ and it is where we can
define our own fields, if so required. Please see the BowTieXP software manual for more information regarding the
‘User Data’ tab. More information regarding the ‘Document Links’ tab is available in chapter 12 Linking to
documentation.

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 Figure 56 - Incident barrier editor

The incident barrier states are drawn on the diagram as follows:

Figure 57 - Incident barrier states

Using these methods we can quickly build complex diagrams such as:

Figure 58 - Example of Tripod Beta diagram (without causation assessment)

5.5. Add a Tripod Beta causation assessment

Once the diagram has been completed we need to assess all the barriers using the Tripod Beta method. As
mentioned earlier, Tripod Beta uses three levels of causation: Immediate causes, Preconditions, and Underlying
causes.

To add a new Tripod causation move your mouse over the bottom of an existing incident barrier and click the green
plus button that appears.

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 Figure 59 - Add new Tripod causation assessment

In the Immediate Cause editor window we can fill in the details of the immediate cause.

Figure 60 - Add descriptions in the Tripod Immediate Cause editor

When we click OK the immediate cause is added to the barrier. You can drag the immediate cause to position its
place above or below the barrier.

Figure 61 - Added Tripod Immediate Cause

You can add one or more precondition(s) and underlying cause(s) by following the same steps. However, now move
the mouse over the left side of the immediate cause and precondition to let the green plus button appear.

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 Figure 62 - Add a new Underlying Cause

The Tripod Beta causation path is completed after adding the underlying cause.

Figure 63 - Completed Tripod causation assessment

Note #1: Originally missing barriers could only have underlying causes linked to it. However this rule has
recently be changed (allowing also immediate cause and preconditions on missing barriers). IncidentXP
supports the original rule and the revised rule.

Note #2: IncidentXP supports categorizing your immediate causes, preconditions and underlying causes.
The list of categories is defined centrally in the case file in the Incident Lookup Tables node.

5.5.1. Add a Basic Risk Factor (BRF)

In the Underlying Cause editor you can also select a basic risk factor (BRF) code. This categorization can be used to
perform trend analysis of the underlying causes. This can provide valuable insights by aggregating the BRF codes,
they become especially useful to highlight weaknesses in the organization when the aggregation is performed on
multiple incidents and over longer periods of time.

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 Figure 64 - Add BRF code

The BRF code can be visualized like this:

Figure 65 - Visualization of BRF code

5.6. The Connector

The incident connector is the line which connects the incident events. To add a new connector move your mouse
over the right or left side of an existing event and click the green plus button that appears. Choose ‘Add new
connector’, and click the event to which the connector should be connected to.

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 Figure 66 - Add new connector

5.7. Editing your Tripod Beta diagram

We will list methods of editing the diagram here for completeness:
 To edit a shape, double click it or select it and press F2.
 To change to order of barriers, drag them left or right beyond its neighbor.
 It is possible to copy (CTRL+C) and paste (CTRL+V) shapes with the clipboard.
 To copy some properties, Use paste special. This allows you to select which items to paste over the
selection.
 To remove an item, select it and press DEL.
 To move items, select it, right-click it and select cut. Click the destination and select paste.

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 The Barrier Failure Analysis (BFA)
6
method
6.1. A brief description of BFA methodology
Barrier Failure Analysis (BFA) is a pragmatic, un-opinionated, general-purpose incident analysis method. It has no
affiliation with any particular organization.

BFA is a way to structure an incident and to categorize parts of incident taxonomy. The structure has events,
barriers and causation paths. Events are used to describe a causal sequence of events that we don't want. This
means each event causes the next event. There can also be parallel events that together cause the next event.

Barriers are used to highlight certain parts of our environment as being primarily designed to stop a chain of events.
They are not necessarily independent, or sufficient. Since the unwanted events still happened, causation paths are
added to explain why the barriers did not perform their function.

The causation path goes three levels deep. The levels are simply called Primary, Secondary and Tertiary level. These
labels can be changed, but the idea is that a barrier can be analyzed in three causal steps. It does not specify
whether the analysis should end on an organizational level or not, although this is what would happen most.

Each level in the causation path can also be categorized. But by default, there are no categories defined. Because
there is an infinite number of possible categorizations and a large number of different kinds of organizations, it will
not be possible to create a single definitive set of categories. Moreover, it allows to user with the flexibility to create
custom categories.

This is why any categorization should go through iterations, to add and remove categories as they become wanted
or obsolete. Optionally, any organization has to make the categories specific to their context. This has a downside of
not being able to make comparisons between different organizations, but that is not the primary goal of this
methodology. It is better to use categories that are relevant than ones that are standardized.

Any organization should go through an initial period of testing and iterating categories. At some point a steady state
should emerge that will capture most incidents. There will always be exceptions, but they should be exactly that,
exceptions. Once exceptions happen more frequently, they stop being exceptions and should be integrated into the
existing categorizations in a new iteration of the taxonomy.

6.2. Creating a BFA diagram

The BFA diagram consists of events, which are connected with connectors. So, to start a diagram we must begin
with a single event.

When the method BFA is selected when an incident is created (section 3.2, Creating an incident & incident analysis
diagram on page 12), the software automatically creates the first event of a BFA diagram, so you can get started on
the BFA diagram immediately.

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 Figure 67 - Default start of BFA

To create a new BFA diagram, you have to right-click the incident node in the treeview and select ‘New Incident’.
Name the diagram and select methodology ‘BFA’.

Figure 68 – Creating a new BFA diagram

6.3. Add a BFA event

Note: It is also possible to add BFA events by selecting events (top event, threats, or consequences) from a
bowtie diagram. In section 9, Linking incidents with bowtie on page 57 you can read how to do this.

To add a new BFA event move your mouse over the right or left side of an existing BFA event and click the green
plus button that appears. The left plus button will add an incoming event (a previous event leading to this one). The
right plus button will add an outgoing event (an event which happened after this one).

Figure 69 - Add a new BFA event

Give the BFA event a name and decide about the appearance of the event – it can be shown as an event, a threat, a
consequence, a top event as well as a potential event (one which did not happen, but could have).

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 Figure 70 - BFA event editor

Here are the different appearance options for the events:

These appearance options are to differentiate what kind of event it is. The first appearance (event) is the default
BFA event appearance. The appearances threat, consequence and top event refer to the bowtie theory. Potential
but not reached is self-explanatory.

When we click OK the event is added to the diagram:

Figure 71 - Added BFA event

We can reposition the events by dragging them around the diagram. A grid will be shown while we are dragging,
indicating where we can drop it. The shapes will snap to the grid. This is called the assisted layout and is used by
BFA diagrams by default. There is also a free grid layout. This means that the diagram shapes can freely be
distributed across the diagram space. To change the layout grid, please see section 10.4 Layout grid on page 71.

6.3.1. Add a BFA event between two events

To add an event in between the two events, we must first make a bit of room in case the events are placed in a
close proximity of each other. To create space between events, drag the rightmost event one slot to the right.

Figure 72 - Creating space between events

When we move the mouse over the connector, we see another green plus button. If we click it, we can add an
event to the connector. The editor pops up and we can enter the details of the event.

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 Figure 73 - Add an event between two events

6.3.2. Add a BFA event in parallel to another event

When one event results into multiple events, we need to add events in parallel. Move the mouse over the right side
of the (first) event, and a green plus button will appear. When we click this plus button, we can add an event
parallel to the other event. The editor pops up and we can enter the details of the event.

Figure 74 - Add an event in parallel to another event

The result will look like this:

Figure 75 - A parallel BFA event

Of course the same can be done if multiple events resulting in one event.

6.4. Add a BFA incident barrier

To add an incident barrier in between two events, we –again- must first make a bit of room. Drag the rightmost
event one slot to the right, please see Figure 1Figure 72. When we move the mouse over the connector, we see a
green plus button. We can add a barrier to the connector by clicking the green plus button.

Figure 76 - Add an incident barrier

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Apart from the name, we can enter a description, enter how it failed, both in a short description and in a longer
multiline format, enter the barrier challenge and response, as well as choose the barrier state – also known as the
failure state: failed, missing, unreliable (inadequate) or effective.

Figure 77 - Incident barrier editor

The incident barrier states are drawn on the diagram as follows:

Figure 78 - Incident barrier states

Using these methods we can quickly build complex diagrams such as:

Figure 79 - Example BFA diagram (1/2)

Or:

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 Figure 80 - Example BFA diagram (2/2)

6.5. Add a BFA causation assessment

Once the diagram has been completed we need to assess all the barriers using a simple three step causation
method.

To add a new BFA causation move your mouse over the bottom of an existing incident barrier and click the green
plus button that appears.

Figure 81 - Add new BFA causation

The BFA causation editor will allow you to do two things:

 Add a description of the three step causation - why the barrier failed/missing/unreliable/inadequate.
 Link your company incident causation chart values to the description of the three step causation.

Note: How to import your own company’s incident causation chart is described in section 6.5.1, Incident
causation chart on page 44. On default this list will be empty for the BFA categories.

Some users like to add both the description and link the incident causation chart, other users choose one of this two
options.

The editor tab in the BFA causation editor allows you to add a description of the primary cause, secondary cause
and tertiary cause.

Figure 82 - Add descriptions in the BFA causation editor

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Custom incident causation charts can be found under the BFA Primary causes, BFA Secondary causes and BFA
Tertiary causes tabs in the BFA causation editor. These tabs allow you to link the BFA chart values to the causation
descriptions. Select one of these tabs and move the applicable chart value from the left to the right window.

Figure 83 - Incident causation chart value linked to the BFA causation

Note: If you want to add a second incident causation path to the same incident barrier, right-click the
incident barrier and choose Add  BFA causation.

6.5.1. Incident causation chart

It is possible to create a tailor-made incident causation chart with all three level cause categorizations in the
treeview. If we take a look at the treeview, and open up the Incident lookup tables node, we will find the BFA
causation chart nodes. An example of BFA causation categories is shown below:

Figure 84 – Example incident causation chart

How to adjust the lookup tables can be found in section 10.3, Adjusting lookup tables on page 69.

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6.6. The Connector
The incident connector is the line which connects the incident events. To add a new connector move your mouse
over the right or left side of an existing BFA event and click the green plus button that appears. Choose ‘Add new
connector’, and click the event to which the connector should be connected to.

Figure 85 - Add new connector

6.7. Edit the BFA diagram

We will list methods of editing the diagram here for completeness:
 To edit a shape, double click it or select it and press F2.
 To change to order of barriers, drag them left or right beyond its neighbor.
 It is possible to copy (CTRL+C) and paste (CTRL+V) shapes with the clipboard.
 To copy some properties, Use paste special. This allows you to select which items to paste over the
selection.
 To remove an item, select it and press DEL.
 To move items, select it, right-click it and select cut. Click the destination and select paste.

Note: The layout engine in the IncidentXP software has been optimized for BFA diagrams – diagrams with
not too many parallel paths. If you attempt to create very complex diagrams, you could run into the
limitations of the automatic layout function.

Breaking the move of items you want to accomplish into separate steps will alleviate this problem. With
separate steps we mean more than one drag and drop operation. Instead of trying to move an item
immediately to the wanted end position, do it in smaller steps. E.g. first move it left, and then move it up.
This also helps you understand what the layout engine is trying to do and make the system work for you,
instead of against you.

Page 45 of 83
 The Root Cause Analysis (RCA)
7
method
7.1. A brief description of RCA methodology
Root Cause Analysis (RCA) is a simple and straightforward incident analysis technique. It starts with an incident and
drills down into the chain of events that led to that incident until the root causes are identified. This method is
widely used throughout the world, and the idea of drilling down to the root cause is also present in all of our other
incident analysis methods.

However, a traditional root cause analysis has the potential to turn into a jumble of elements. We felt this could be
improved, so we did two things. First, we added some more subtle categorisations so you can see at a glance where
the real problem areas are. You don't need to use them, but if you do, we think you will create better analyses, and
it will be easier for your audience to see what you're trying to communicate. Second, you can cut up a large diagram
into smaller pieces, and link them together. Separating the main diagram from sub-diagrams avoids a situation
where the diagram becomes so large you lose overview. We hope these changes to RCA will help you create better
analyses.

7.1.1. Barriers vs RCA

The main difference between RCA and our other incident analysis methods is that RCA is not barrier based.
Everything in RCA is an event, including those things that would be considered barriers or barrier failures in BSCAT,
Tripod or BFA. This doesn't matter if you just want to use RCA, but there is one important caveat. Whereas the
barrier based incident analysis methods like BSCAT, Tripod and BFA can be mapped back onto the bowtie because
their structure is similar, RCA cannot be linked back to a bowtie, because the bowtie structure depends heavily on
identifying barriers, which RCA does not do.

7.2. Creating an RCA diagram

To create a new BFA diagram, you have to right-click the incident node in the treeview and select ‘New Incident’.
Name the diagram and select methodology ‘RCA’.

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 Figure 86 - Creating new RCA diagram

The RCA diagram consists of events, which are connected with connectors. So, to start a diagram we must begin
with a single event.

When the method RCA is selected when an incident is created (see section 3.2, Creating an incident & incident
analysis diagram on page 12), the software automatically creates the first event of a RCA diagram, so you can get
started on the RCA diagram immediately.

Figure 87 - Default start of RCA

7.3. Add an RCA event

Add an event by clicking the green plus button on the right side of the shape and subsequently selecting Add new
Event.

Figure 88 - Adding an event using the green plus button

Another way of adding an event is done by right-clicking the event and subsequently selecting Add  Add Event to
the Left/Right.

It is also possible to add a new RCA event click this button in the toolbar: .

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Name the RCA event, and decide about the appearance of the event – it can be shown as a 'Regular event, a Root
cause, a Contributing cause, Confirmed not a cause, More info needed, and a Stop event.

You can also assign a category, date and time, qualitative date and time and equivalent Incident diagram. When an
equivalent incident diagram is chosen, a link will be created from this particular event to another incident diagram.
See section 7.6, Link RCA event to equivalent incident diagram on page 50 for more information.

Figure 89 - RCA event editor

Here are the different appearance options for the events:

These appearance options are to differentiate what kind of event it is. The first event (regular) is the default RCA
event appearance.

When we click OK the event is added to the diagram:

Figure 90 - Added RCA event

We can reposition the events by dragging them around the diagram. By default, RCA diagrams uses a free layout
grid. The free layout allows the user with control over the layout of the diagram. This means that the diagram
shapes can be freely distributed on the diagram space by simply moving them or with cutting and pasting
movements. In this way, Tripod diagrams can easily be rearranged. To change the layout grid, please see section
10.4 Layout grid on page 71.

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7.3.1. Add a RCA event in parallel to another event
To add events in parallel, move the mouse over the right side of the (first) event, and a green plus button will
appear. When we click this plus button, we can add an event parallel to the other event. The editor pops up and we
can enter the details of the event.

Figure 91 - Add an event in parallel to another event

The result will look like this:

Figure 92 - A parallel RCA event

7.4. The Connector

The incident connector is the line which connects the incident events. To add a new connector move your mouse
over the right or left side of an existing RCA event and click the green plus button that appears. Choose ‘Add new
Connector’, and click the event to which the connector should be connected to.

Figure 93 - Add new connector

7.5. Edit the RCA diagram

We will list methods of editing the diagram here for completeness:
 To edit a shape, double click it or select it and press F2.
 To change to order of barriers, drag them left or right beyond its neighbor.
 It is possible to copy (CTRL+C) and paste (CTRL+V) shapes with the clipboard.
 To copy some properties, Use paste special. This allows you to select which items to paste over the
selection.
 To remove an item, select it and press DEL.
 To move items, select it, right-click it and select cut. Click the destination and select paste.

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7.6. Link RCA event to equivalent incident diagram
When RCA diagrams become too large or when multiple incident investigators or investigation teams investigate
different parts of the incident, a decision can be made to split the RCA diagram into different parts.

Take the following steps to connect an RCA diagram to an RCA event from a different diagram within the same
incident.
1) Double click the RCA event which should be linked to the other RCA diagram.
2) Choose the RCA diagram that should be linked to this event.
3) Click OK.

Figure 94 - Linking equivalent incident diagram

Note: it is only possible to link to RCA diagrams within the same incident.

An arrow will appear next to the event once a link is created. You can click this arrow to navigate to the linked RCA
diagram.

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Figure 95 - Navigate to equivalent incident diagram

Page 51 of 83
 Actions / recommendations
8
Actions can be used in two ways, as TODO items during the incident investigation, or as recommendations (an
improvement plan) as a result of the incident analysis. Actions are visualized on the bowtie as post-it shapes. The
action code is also displayed in the sticky note shaped action.

8.1. Actions as a TODO list

Incident diagrams are often already created during the information gathering phase of the incident investigation.
Creating incident analysis diagrams gives the incident investigator insight of where information is lacking.

Creating an action lets you track all the elements in your incident diagram that need further investigation. An
example could look like this:

Figure 96 - Example of a TODO action during incident investigation

8.2. Actions as recommendations

Actions can be also used as recommendations to create an improvement plan. After completing the incident
analysis diagram, there is a better understanding of how the incident could have happened. Recommendations
could refer to adding new barriers, improving existing barriers or changing the organization by improving the root
causes. Actions can be used to highlight those areas.

Some examples of actions as improvements are: correcting an error in a procedure, adding a new railing or changing
the accountable party for a barrier. The improvements do not need to be repeated regularly, but are implemented
once to improve the level of safety.

Actions to create a new barrier are usually displayed on the associated event, while improvements on existing
barriers are usually put on the barrier itself or the causation path. An example could look like this:

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 Figure 97 - Example of recommendations on an incident diagram

8.3. Adding an action

To add an action, first select the element you want to add the action to. Adding an action can be done in two
different ways:

1) Clicking the action icon in the toolbar,

Figure 98 - Action button in the toolbar

2) or right-clicking the element  Add  Action...

Note: the action icon in the toolbar will only be activated once an element is selected, since actions need
to be linked to an element of your diagram and can’t “float” in the diagram space.

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 Figure 99 - Add action by right-clicking

The action editor will open and will allow you to add the following data:

 Code: the action code is displayed on the diagram.

 Name: describes what the action is about.
 Description: a detailed description of the action.
 Category: a taxonomy for categorizing actions.
 External Reference: this field can be used to fill in a reference to an external action tracking system.
 Action party: the job title responsible for completing this action. The Job titles are defined in the Lookup
tables.
 Target: gives the date before which the action has to be completed.
 Priority: gives a priority to an action. The list of priorities is defined in the Lookup tables
 Completed: this box is ticked once the action has been completed.
 Sign off authorized by: the job title that authorized the completion.
 Sign off date: the date on which the action was signed off.
 Sign off comment: an optional field to provide comments when signing off an action.

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 Figure 100 - Add action window

8.4. Visualizing actions

Actions are visualized on the bowtie as post-it shapes. The code is also displayed.

Go to Diagram  Display options or click the display options button in the toolbar ( ) to adapt the visualization
of the actions.

Figure 101 - Action shape display settings

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 Under Action Shapes, select either None to hide all actions, Overdue to show all uncompleted actions with the
target overdue, Uncompleted to show only uncompleted actions or All to see both completed and uncompleted
actions.

In the Colors tab you can also select Action Colors. Coloring can be done by Priority, overdue status or completion
status.

Figure 102 - Action color display settings

8.5. Action reports

There are multiple specific reports available for actions. Go to Tools  Reports or click the report button in the

main toolbar ( ). Then expand the Actions section to see the following action reports:
 Actions in XL: a flat list of Actions, opens in Excel
 All Actions: a list of all actions in alphabetical order based on code, opens in Word
 Actions by Action party: a report with all actions sorted by Action party, opens in Word
 Actions by Priority and Action party: a report with all actions sorted by Priority, opens in Word
 Actions of a specific Action party: a report with all actions for a specific job title, opens in Word

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 Linking incidents with bowtie
9
Note #1: The incident analysis methodology RCA cannot be linked with bowtie risk assessment since this
methodology does not use the “barrier thinking/language”.

Note #2: To create templates containing bowtie information, and to bring the incidents onto the bowties,
you will need an IncidentXP + BowTieXP license.

Note #3: For a brief summary about the bowtie risk assessment methodology, see section 14, A brief
description of a subset of bowtie methodology on page 81. Please refer to our BowTieXP manuals if you
are looking for an extensive explanation of the bowtie methodology and BowTieXP software.

The IncidentXP software allows you to reuse and link existing risk assessment information (bowties) and do full
integration of incident analysis and risk analysis.

If applicable bowtie diagrams are available for use during your investigation, you can bring events and barriers from
the bowtie directly into your incident analysis diagram. This results in a better fit between incident and risk
assessment analysis, which in turn allows you to improve the risk assessment.

Especially for small incidents this is a big advantage – it allows staff to analyze incidents in a barrier-based
methodology with minimal training. Creating a barrier based incident diagram requires training, but with this
templated approach, all incidents which fit onto existing bowties, can be quickly analyzed using any incident
analysis method.

After finishing the incident analysis the incident data and recommendations can be linked back into the bowtie risk
assessment and visualized on the barriers. Bringing all your incidents into a single BowTieXP case file allows you to
aggregate barrier failures and allows users to do trend analysis over multiple incidents and therefor it allows you to
visually see the weaker areas in your management system.

This entire process allows you to gauge barrier effectiveness and availability based on real-world information
extracted from the incident analyses.

Figure 103 - Bowtie risk assessment & incident analysis

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9.1. Creating a bowtie templated incident analysis diagram
You have to do two things before you will be able start the incident analysis using the bowtie diagram data:
1) Make sure there are bowtie diagrams available in the bowtie case file (.btf).
2) Create an incident folder in the treeview. See section 3.2, Creating an incident & incident analysis diagram
on page 12 how to do this.

If your bowtie case file contains bowtie information, the ‘Add Event from bowtie’ button will be enabled in the
toolbar:

Figure 104 - Add event from bowtie button

By selecting the ‘Add Event from bowtie’ button, you will be presented with a drop down menu allowing you to
choose a bowtie element (top event, threat or consequence) to start from:

Figure 105 - Add event from bowtie

In this example we chose a road safety bowtie, and we are about to click the threat ‘Blowout (tire)’. Once clicked,
the event is added to our diagram. A link to the bowtie where the event came from is preserved. Because of this link
when we click the green plus button to add another event, we get a little menu allowing us to choose the next
logical step in the (bowtie) event flow:

Figure 106 - Add new (bowtie) event

Once selected, not only is the top event ‘Losing control over the vehicle’ brought into the diagram, but also the
associated barriers:

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 Figure 107 - Added new (bowtie) event, including barriers

In this manner we can continue adding all the items we need. We can also manually add items.

When using Tripod Beta methodology, you have to edit the appearance of the events (see section 5.2, Creating a
Tripod Beta diagram on page 28).

Because Tripod Beta uses trio’s instead of straight event lines, you will need to rework your events. Each event will
be split up in 2 elements: an agent and an object. Also you probably need to replace some barriers. You can do this
by ‘Cut’ (selecting a barrier and press Ctrl + X) and ‘Paste’ (selecting the other connector and press Ctrl + V).

After creating our diagram, we will need to visit each barrier and fill in the failure details and assign a barrier state
(failed, missing, unreliable / inadequate or effective), and of course do a causation assessment. These causation
assessments are methodology specific and can be read in the associated chapters:

For BSCAT, see section 4.5, Add a BSCAT causation assessment on page 24.
For Tripod Beta, see section 5.5, Add a Tripod Beta causation assessment on page 33.
For BFA, see section 6.5, Add a BFA causation assessment on page 43.

9.1.1. Difference in detail level between risk assessment and incident analysis
There exists a mismatch in the perspective/ abstraction level of the defined barriers between the risk analysis
(bowtie diagrams) and the incident analysis. Barriers in incident analyses tend to be described more specific than
those in risk analysis – those tend to be defined more abstract, high-level. For example: ‘high level alarm’ in a risk
assessment can become (more specific) ‘High level alarm A2.1 on Tank X’ in your incident analysis. Incident analysis
can be more specific because -once an incident occurred- specific information is available, where a risk assessment
needs to describe all possible scenarios.

Note: The name of the elements in your incident analysis diagram can be adjusted without losing the
connection with the linked bowtie diagram. When adjusting your incident analysis diagram, the linked
bowtie diagram will not be adjusted.

9.2. Linking incident analysis elements to bowtie diagrams

Note: The link between the incident analysis and the bowtie diagram is automatically created when the
incident analysis diagram is created by using existing bowties. See section 9.1, Creating a bowtie
templated incident analysis diagram on page 58.

The link between the incident diagram and a particular bowtie can be also created after finishing a ‘free from’
incident diagram.

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To link an incident barrier to a bowtie barrier, double click a barrier and open the tab called ‘Barriers’ in the incident
barrier editor.

Figure 108 - Incident barrier editor - Linking to bowtie barrier

Select the corresponding bowtie barrier(s) under ‘Available’ and move it to the ‘Assigned’ window. The filter can be
used to search for a specific barrier.

The process of linking an incident event to a bowtie event (threat, top event or consequence) looks almost the
same. In this case, double click the incident event and search for the corresponding bowtie events in the tabs
Hazards, Threats, Consequences and Escalation factors.

Figure 109 - Incident event editor - Linking to bowtie event

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9.3. Visualizing incident analysis data on the bowtie diagram
The barriers failure statistics and failure details in the bowtie diagram can be shown once the links between the
bowtie barriers and the incident barriers have been made. Failure details include the barrier failure state and the
causation paths.

To enable this view, you select the incident filter from the filters drop down on the bowtie diagram toolbar:

Figure 110 - Enabling Incident Filter

Here is a cut out of a simple bowtie diagram showing incident barrier states:

Figure 111 - Bowtie diagram showing incident barrier states

9.3.1. Incident Filter toolbar

Once the incident filter is selected, the incident filter toolbar will be displayed. The filter toolbar allows you to fine-
tune what information will be shown. You can choose to show data from one incident, all incidents or from a
specific set of incidents:

Figure 112 - Incident filter toolbar

[Link]. Incidents
You can choose which incident you would like to display below ‘Incidents’.

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 Figure 113 - Incident filter (incident selection)

[Link].1. General
You can change various general visibility settings, applicable to all kinds of incident data below ‘General’:
 Show incident count: show the number of incidents the barrier was linked to.
 Show linked item count: show the number of incident shapes the bowtie element was linked to. As
incident diagrams tend to be more specific (where bowties are more general/abstract), it will happen that
for instance a single bowtie barrier will be linked to multiple incident barriers. This count reflects that.
 Show incident item state count: show the number of counts of how a shape was implicated in the
incident diagrams. For instance below barriers it will show the count of how often the barrier was failed,
indaquate, unreliable, missing, or effective.
 Include draft Incident Diagrams: this can be used to toggle draft incident diagram data onto the bowtie
diagrams on or off. The incident diagram status can be altered by double clicking an incident diagram in
the treeview.

Figure 114 - Incident filter (general settings)

[Link]. BSCAT/BFA
You can change various BFA/BSCAT diagram related visibility settings, applicable to all kinds of incident data below
‘BSCAT/BFA’:

 Show links: whether or not to show the BSCAT/BFA chart values

o Show top level links only: if we want to see the actual item, or only the main category
o Show codes only: If we want to see the full description, or just the code
 Show free text: whether or not to show the free text description of the causation path.
 Show free text: shows text inserted in the causation path. For BFA, it also shows the name and count of
the causation taxonomy as well.

Figure 115 - Incident filter (BSCAT/BFA settings)

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[Link]. Tripod
You can change various Tripod diagram related visibility settings, applicable to all kinds of incident data below
‘Tripod:
 Show Tripod causations: whether to show Tripod Causation paths
o Only show BRF summary: whether we want to see the whole causation path or only the BRF
code

Figure 116 - Incident filter (Tripod settings)

[Link]. Date & Organization Unit

In larger organizations, it can be helpful to compare the incidents statistics of different sites and dates. This allows a
company to benchmark within their own company and sees where additional effort is required. To make these
comparisons easier, a ‘Date’ and ‘Organizational Unit’ filter has been implemented. This allows the user to show the
incident data of a specific date and or Organizational Unit on the bowtie.

For the date filter in the incident filter, it is possible to use the predefined date options, or to set a custom date
range.

Figure 117 - Incident filter (date settings)

To filter for organizational units, (un)check the relevant boxes.

Figure 118 - Incident filter (Organization Unit settings)

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9.3.2. Filter strength
You can choose to show all bowtie elements, or limit the bowtie to only the paths involved in the incident(s). This is
arranged in the filter strength:

Figure 119 - Filter strength

The filter strength has six strength levels:

1) Show everything
2) Show everything + grey out non selected items
3) Hide unrelated paths
4) Hide unrelated paths + grey out non selected items
5) Show only directly and indirectly selected
6) Show only directly selected + grey out indirectly selected

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 Configuring the diagram
10
In this chapter we explore how to configure the
diagram appearance.

IncidentXP has diagrams which are configurable in many ways – there are loads of options to tailor the display to
your needs. You can apply various colors and show all kinds of extra information. This chapter will explain all the
various settings.

10.1. Changing display settings for a single type of item

In the diagram, if you hoover your mouse over an item, an eye-shaped icon will appear:

Figure 120 - Eye shaped icon - display settings

By clicking the eyed-shaped icon, a dialog box will appear which allows you to customize the display of the item. It
lists all the fields which can be shown on the diagram as extra information boxes. This is done by selecting the
button on the S or L column. S stands for Short format and L stands for Long format.

Figure 121 - Set incident barrier display dialog (1/2)

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You can also select which property is to be used to color the item – this is done by selecting the check box in the
color column. For example, these settings:

Figure 122 - Set incident barrier display dialog (2/2)

The above settings result into the visualization shown below:

Figure 123 - Incident barrier colored by barrier state and displaying documents

You can adjust the display for all items on the diagram. If you need to configure more than one item, you can also
use the large diagram display options dialog, discussed in the next section.

10.2. Changing display settings for the whole diagram

Changing settings for the entire diagram is done by clicking the eye-icon in the toolbar ( ). This brings up the
current display settings.

This dialog consists of several tabs which allow you the change the appearance of the diagram(s).

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 Figure 124 - Diagram display options – ‘Show’

10.2.1. Display settings - the ‘Show’ tab

The first tab ‘Show’ is about what extra information to display and whether to display actions and causation
descriptions.

On the left hand side you can choose whether or not to show actions, and if so, which ones; only the overdue, only
the uncompleted, or all the actions.

You can also choose here whether and how to display the causation descriptions.

Figure 125 - Diagram display options - actions and causation descriptions

On the right hand side you can choose –per element- which information to display.

Figure 126 - Diagram display options - right hand side of ‘Show’ tab

For each bit of information present on an item there are three options:
 S for Short format
 L for Long format
 Off to not display the information

10.2.2. Display settings - the ‘Colors’ tab

The next tab is about how to color the shapes.

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 Figure 127 - Diagram display options – ‘Colors’

In the left hand side of this page we can configure the action’s color, and if we want colors to appear in the extra
info boxes (configured in the previous tab page). If some colors lead to bad readability, we can also choose to
display the color only in the little box on the left hand side (show as flag next to text).

In the right hand side of this page we can select which property to use to color the main shapes.

10.2.3. Fonts to use – the ‘Fonts’ tab

The next tab allows us to set default fonts. Click the button to bring up a font dialog. An example of the current font
will be showed in the box.

The General Font is shown in the main incident diagram boxes (events and barriers). The Extra Info Font is shown in
the incident diagram causation path.

Figure 128 - Diagram display options – ‘Fonts’

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10.2.4. Fonts to use – the ‘Sizing & Layout’ tab
The last tab allows us to make decisions about sizing and layout of boxes and connectors.

Figure 129 - Diagram display options – “Sizing & Layout”

10.3. Adjusting lookup tables

While creating incident diagrams (and the timeline), you will find a lot of drop down pick lists. These lists all refer to
the lookup table lists in the treeview. These lookup tables are configurable to your company standards.

Right-click a lookup table node to add, edit or delete a value in the list or change the value order.

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 Figure 130 - Adjusting the lookup tables

10.3.1. Adjusting lookup table colors

The colors used in the diagram are adjustable. They can be set using the editor in the treeview. Find the appropriate
value to edit in the treeview, open the editor and subsequently select ‘Choose’.

Figure 131 - Adjusting lookup table colors

In the editor we click the ‘Choose’ button to bring up the color picker dialog. You can choose a pattern and/or a
color.

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 Figure 132 - Color picker dialog

The software has a default color that is used when no value has been assigned to a property. This color can also be
adjusted: Select Case -> Edit null value colors in the menu. This will bring up the dialog below (Figure 133 - Null
value colorsFigure 133).Clicking an item will bring up the color picker dialog.

Figure 133 - Null value colors

10.4. Layout grid

IncidentXP has various layout options to facilitate incident analysis diagram creation and development. There are
two main grid layout options:
 Assisted Layout: the incident diagram shapes have to fit into a grid in the diagram space. BFA & BSCAT
diagrams have this option enabled by default. The shapes will automatically snap to the grid when adding
or dropping shapes.
 Free grid Layout: the diagram shapes can freely be distributed across the diagram space. This means that
the diagram shapes can be freely distributed on the diagram space by simply moving them or with cutting
and pasting movements. The free layout allows the user with control over the layout of the diagram,
easily rearranging the shapes. This option is especially useful for non-linear incident analysis diagrams.
RCA & Tripod-Beta diagrams have this option enabled by default.
To select ‘Assisted Layout’ or ‘Free grid Layout’, us this icon in the toolbar.

Figure 134 - Layout options icon

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When this icon is selected, multiple options are presented. To select a main layout option, select the applicable
layout option.

Figure 135 - Select assisted or free grid layout

In the grid options dropdown, there are various other grid display options, such as showing/hiding the grid, or
showing the grid as lines or as dots.

Below the grid options menu it is possible to select ‘Perform Automatic Layout’. This can be used when you have
been creating a diagram using the free grid layout, but you want the shapes to snap to the grid to make them more
readable. This is because shapes can overlap until a certain extent using the free grid layout.

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 Case file tools
11
11.1. Listview window
The listview window sums up underlying information of the selected node

The listview is especially useful for the display of backlinks.

When a document link is referenced on say, a barrier, there’s a virtual arrow pointing from the barrier to the
location in the treeview where the document link is defined. This arrow is called the link. We can also follow this
arrow in the reverse direction, from the document links to all the barriers where it is used. These are called the
backlinks. The backlinks are all the places where the item is used.

A similar concept applies to lookup table values, the items used in drop down lists such as the incident type. For
each item we can find out where they are used by showing us their backlinks.

This is done by right-clicking the item of which you want to see where it is referenced, and selecting the option in
the context menu called ‘Show usage references’. The listview will show the usage references and indicate that it is
displaying backlinks.

11.2. Quality checks window

The quality checks window can display a number of different reports pertaining to the quality and completeness of
the incident analysis diagram you are building.

You can find the quality checks hidden on the right side of the diagram in the default layout or open the window by
selecting: View  Windows  Quality Checks.

From the drop-down box at the top of the window, select the report you want from the list. Once you have selected
a report, the window is populated with the results.

To refresh the list of items, click the button with the blue circular arrow.

The quality checks are extremely helpful in identifying missing data in your analysis.

Figure 136 - Quality checks window

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11.3. Case overview
The case file overview presents many views onto the data in the case file from different perspectives, allowing
visualization of relationships which might otherwise be less evident, and allowing you also to quickly finding related
data.

The Case overview is a separate tab in the diagram window, next to the Incident diagram tab. Activation of this tab
can be done in the main menu View  Windows  Case overview.

Using the drop-down menu on the toolbar labeled Overview Perspectives, you can change the perspective.

Figure 137 - Case overview window

Note: On default some buttons in the toolbar will be hided. See section 3.1.4, Add and remove buttons on
page 11 to learn how to add and remove buttons.

All output from each overview can be exported to Excel by means of the ‘Export to Excel’ button ( ).

When information in the case file changes the case file overview will update automatically. If, for some reason, you

want to rebuild the output you can do so with the ‘reset/reload’ button ( ).

All the case overview buttons are shown below.

Icon Description

Execute expand by keyword operation by means of the keywords entered into the text box

Go to previous keyword match

Go to next keyword match

Expand all

Collapse all

Go to definition in the treeview

Show relationship model of selected entity (only activated in combination with BowTieXP)

Reset/reload

Export to Excel

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11.3.1. Document links perspective
This perspective lists all document links defined in your case file and where they are used.

11.3.2. Incident actions perspective

This perspective finds all actions present in any incident analysis diagram and displays them in two groups:
completed actions and open actions.

11.3.3. IncidentXP incident analysis overview

This perspective lists aggregated causation chart value counts, which makes trend analysis possible. It aggregates
the values for the entire case file as well as per incident analysis diagram.

Figure 138 - Case overview – perspective: IncidentXP incident analysis overview

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 Linking to documentation
12
A lot of the information in a case file has close
relationship with documents already in existence. This
chapter shows how to refer them.

12.1. Introduction
A lot of information which is present in a case file refers to things which have already been documented elsewhere,
and in a lot of places in a case file you might want to refer to that information. Also evidence is often captured in a
document, which should be linked to the incident analysis.

To solve this need, there are the document links. Document links are pointers to external documentation which can
be linked to various elements within your case file. In this chapter we will see how we can make efficient use of
them.

Document links are defined in a central hierarchy, and then linked to the relevant items in the rest of the case file.

When assigned they can be shown on the diagram, and quickly accesses by means of the ‘open/go to’ icon :

Figure 139 - Barrier showing documents links along with "open" button

12.2. Creating a document link

To create a document link, navigate to ‘Document Link Groups’ node in the Treeview, right-click this node and select
‘New Document Link Group’. Within Document Link Groups, actual Document Links can be created. Document links
can be created in hierarchical structure. A sub-document link will be created if you add a Document Link by right-
clicking an existing Document Link or Document Link Group.

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 Figure 140 - Add new document link (1/3)

Figure 141 - Add new document link (2/3)

A document link contains a code, a name, a description and a location. The location defines where the actual
document resides. This can be a URL or a file path.

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 Figure 142 - Add new document link (2/2)

12.3. Linking a document link to the diagram

After defining document links, they can be linked onto other elements by the usual methods of dragging and
dropping or using the document links tab in the editor window.

Figure 143 - Linking a document link to an incident event

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 Getting data out of the program
13
In this chapter we take a look at the methods to
generate information for creating reports.

13.1. Introduction
Putting information into case files is nice, but it is even better to get all the information out of the case files in
various perspectives and formats.

In this chapter we take a look at the different methods for outputting information.

We will look at:

 The output of the various reports,
 The export of the diagrams.

13.2. Reporting
You can report information in a case file in various ways using the built-in reporting engine. There are many
different types of reports with different functionality and visualization of the information. Depending on the chosen
report, the format will either be Microsoft Word (rtf) or Microsoft Excel.

13.2.1. Generating a report

Follow these steps to generate a report:

1. Select Tools  Reports, or click the report button in the toolbar ( ).

2. Select the desired report.
3. After selecting the report, it’s automatically opened in Word, WordPad, or Excel.

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 Figure 144 - Generating a report

You can then save the report under a name of your choosing.

13.3. Export of diagrams

There are three ways to export an incident analysis diagram (or timeline):

Icon Description

Copy to clipboard: allows you to paste the diagram in another application (e.g. PowerPoint).
This will export a vector based image, which can be enlarged and reduced in size without
losing the image’s quality. This makes it very suitable for documents, printing or
presentations.

Save diagram as…: allows you to save the diagram as a picture (e.g. jpg). Most formats are
not vector based and therefore not ideal for printing.

Export to Microsoft Visio: allows you to export to Microsoft Visio.

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 A brief description of a subset of
14
bowtie methodology
The bowtie methodology is used for risk assessment, risk management and risk communication. The method is
designed to give a better overview of the situation in which certain risks are present; to help people understand the
relationship between the risks and organizational events.

Risk in the bowtie methodology is represented by the relationship between hazards, top events, threats and
consequences. Barriers are used to display what measures an organization has in place to control the risk.
All these are combined in an easy-to-read diagram as follows:

Figure 145 - The bowtie diagram

14.1. Hazard
The word “hazard” suggests that it is unwanted, but in fact it is the opposite: it is exactly the thing you want or even
need to make business. It is an entity with the potential to cause harm but without it there is no business. For
example the oil industry; oil is a dangerous substance (and can cause a lot of harm when treated without care) but it
is the one the thing that keeps the oil industry in business! It needs to be managed because as long as it is under
control, it is of no harm.

14.2. Top event

Thus as long as a hazard is controlled it is in its wanted state. For example: oil in a pipe on its way to shore. But
certain events can cause the hazard to be released. In bowtie methodology such an event is called the top event.
The top event is not a catastrophe yet, but the dangerous characteristics of the hazard are now in the open. This is
the moment in which control over the hazard is lost. For example: oil is outside of the pipeline (loss of
containment). Not a major disaster, but if not mitigated correctly it can result in multiple undesired events
(consequences).

14.3. Threats
Often there are several factors that could cause the top event. In bowtie methodology these are called threats.
These threats need to be sufficient or necessary: every threat itself should have the ability to cause the top event.
For example: corrosion of the pipeline can lead to the loss of containment.

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14.4. Consequences
When a top event has occurred it can lead to certain consequences. A consequence is a potential event resulting
from the release of the hazard which results directly in loss or damage. Consequences in bowtie methodology are
unwanted events that an organization ‘by all means’ wants to avoid. For example: oil leaking into the environment.

14.5. Barriers (also known as controls)

Risk management is about controlling risks. This is done by placing barriers to prevent certain events form happing.
A barrier (or control) can be any measure taken that acts against some undesirable force or intention, in order to
maintain a desired state.

In bowtie methodology there are proactive barriers (on the left side of the top event) that prevent the top event
from happening. For example: regularly corrosion inspections of the pipelines. There are also reactive barriers (on
the right side of the top event) that prevent the top event resulting into unwanted consequences. For example: leak
detection equipment or concrete floor around oil tank platform.

Note the terms barrier and control are the same construct and depending on industry and company, one or the
other is used. In this manual we will use the term barrier.

14.6. Escalation factors/defeating factors/barrier decay mechanisms

In an ideal situation a barrier will stop a threat from causing the top event. However, many barriers are not a 100%
effective. There are certain conditions that can make a barrier fail. In bowtie methodology these are called
escalation factors. An escalation factor is a condition that leads to increased risk by defeating or reducing the
effectiveness of a barrier. For example: earthquake leading to cracks in the concrete floor around a pipeline.
Escalation factors are also known as defeating factors or barrier decay mechanisms – which term is used is
dependent on industry and company. In this document we will use the term escalation factor.

14.7. Terminology recap

The following terms should now be familiar to you:
 The hazard, part of normal business but with the potential to cause harm, can be released by:
 A top event, no catastrophe yet but the first event in a chain of unwanted events.
 The top event can be caused by threats (sufficient or necessary causes).
 The top event has the potential to lead to unwanted consequences.
 (Proactive) barriers are measures taken to prevent threats from resulting into the top event.
 (Reactive) barriers are measures taken to prevent that the top event leads to unwanted consequences.
 An escalation factor is a condition that defeats or reduces the effectiveness of a barrier.

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 15
Support
15.1. Helpdesk
For users that have bought IncidentXP with support and maintenance a helpdesk is available. This helpdesk assists
people that have technical and user-related questions regarding IncidentXP, how to install it and how to use it to its
fullest extent.

You can reach the IncidentXP helpdesk via e-mail at support@[Link] or by telephone on +31 (0) 88 1001 350.

Please refer to [Link] for our Support & Maintenance Brochure. It explains what customers receive
when purchasing support & maintenance.

15.2. Software training

Please contact us at support@[Link] or by telephone on 31 (0) 88 100 1350 for software training.

15.3. BSCAT method training

DNV-GL offers training courses in accident investigation using the BSCAT method. If you are interested in such
training, please contact:

Chris Urwin
Associate Director, Head of ISRS Product Centre, DNV-GL
Highbank House, Exchange Street, Stockport,
Cheshire SK3 0ET, United Kingdom

[Link]@[Link]

15.4. Tripod Beta method training

Tripod Beta training is available from various parties, for example:

AdviSafe B.V.
Koperslagersweg 23
1786 RA Den Helder
Nederland

+31 (0) 223 540000

info@[Link]

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