Shutdown team
Shutdown Team Roles and RACI Matrix
A shutdown team is a temporary organization with one accountable leader, the shutdown manager, and clear decision rights for planning, operations, safety, contracts, materials and cost. A RACI matrix makes ownership explicit: one person is Accountable for every activity.
How MaintWiz helps: Everyone sees the same plan and their part of it. The MaintWiz shutdown module gives technicians checklists with readings and photos, sends findings to the planner and shows a Today view of what needs attention. See the module · Get the daily progress template
By Jai Balachandran · Published · Last reviewed
What MaintWiz adds:Today page for the plannerChecklists with readings and photosFindings to the plannerHandover notes and as-left summary
The roles
Who does what in a shutdown team?
A shutdown team is a temporary organization with one accountable leader, the shutdown manager, supported by planning, operations, safety, contracts, materials and cost roles, each with a clear decision right. 1
A stop puts hundreds of people in a plant for a short time, so ownership has to be explicit. The table lists nine roles that appear on most large stops. Titles differ by company and country; match the role, not the title. For how the team feeds the plan, see how to plan a plant shutdown and the 40-step checklist.
| Role | Answers for | Typically decides | Works most with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steering group | Objective, budget and window of the stop | Go or no-go, budget changes, scope additions above a limit | Shutdown manager |
| Shutdown manager | Safety, schedule, cost and scope of the whole stop | Priorities, recovery actions, approval of scope changes within limits | Everyone below |
| Planner and scheduler | Work packages, the logic-linked schedule and the baseline | Sequence, logic and duration; reports float and the critical path | Discipline leads, shutdown manager |
| Area or discipline lead | Quality and progress of the work in one area or craft | Crew allocation, method, daily priorities within the schedule | Planner, operations, contractors |
| Operations lead | Taking the plant out of service and restarting it | Handover of equipment to maintenance and back, startup sequence | Shutdown manager, permit coordinator |
| Permit coordinator and safety lead | Isolations, permits and safe work on site | Whether a permit is issued, suspended or withdrawn; stop-work calls | Operations lead, contractors |
| Contracts lead | Contractor mobilization, claims and performance | Contractor selection, mobilization dates, variation orders | Shutdown manager, planner |
| Materials planner | Parts and tools staged on site and ready | Kit release, expediting, substitution of parts | Planner, area leads |
| Cost controller | Budget, cost reporting and forecast | Accruals and forecast method; flags overruns to the shutdown manager | Shutdown manager, planner |
The matrix
What does a shutdown RACI matrix look like?
A RACI matrix marks each person on each activity as Responsible (does it), Accountable (owns the result, one person only), Consulted (gives input before) or Informed (told after); the one rule that makes it work is exactly one A on every row.
A free Excel version is available: RACI matrix (.xlsx).
The matrix below covers twelve activities across the eight working roles. Read across a row to see who does what; read down a column to see whether one role carries too much. Where two activities meet, as in the readiness review, several people are Responsible but one person is still Accountable.
| Activity | Shutdown manager | Planner | Area lead | Operations | Safety and permits | Contracts | Materials | Cost control |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Set the objective and window | A | C | I | C | C | I | I | C |
| Freeze the scope | A | R | C | C | C | I | I | C |
| Build and baseline the schedule | A | R | C | C | I | C | C | I |
| Approve a scope change | A | R | C | C | C | C | C | R |
| Develop work packages | I | A | R | C | C | C | C | I |
| Select and mobilize contractors | C | C | I | I | C | A | I | C |
| Stage parts and tools | I | C | C | I | I | I | A | I |
| Hold the readiness review | A | R | R | R | R | C | R | C |
| Isolate, issue permits, verify | I | I | C | R | A | I | I | I |
| Run daily progress control | A | R | R | C | C | C | C | C |
| Hand equipment back and restart | C | C | C | A | R | I | I | I |
| Report cost and forecast | C | C | I | I | I | C | I | A |
Three checks before you issue a RACI matrix
- Every row has exactly one A
- No column is mostly R: that person is a bottleneck
- No row has an A and no R: nobody does the work
The matrix is a working template, not a published standard. The letters are the common RACI convention. Change the assignments to fit your own organization and legal duties.
Software
Can software hold the roles and the RACI?
Software cannot choose your shutdown manager, but it can make roles real: each person sees only their own menus, every approval carries a name and a time, and a work package has one owner.
About MaintWiz. MaintWiz is an industrial AI platform with IoT, SAP integration and predictive maintenance (PdM) capabilities. Its shutdown and turnaround module helps plants plan, schedule, execute and close out shutdown work.
Also see the work package guide.
What the shutdown module covers
As described on the MaintWiz shutdown maintenance product page.
- Work packages with an owner, crew, dates and tasks, linked to the schedule
- Role-based menus: each role sees only its own screens, set by an administrator
- Readiness gates with waivers and sign-offs recorded with a reason, the name and the date
- Approvals recorded against the signed-in user with the name and the time
- Executive view with a health matrix and decisions ranked by effect
- Permits and isolations from ePTW shown on each work order
- Handover note and as-left summary on each work order
Proof
What MaintWiz customers report
Figures as published in MaintWiz case studies on maintwiz.com. They come from maintenance management projects, not shutdowns.
Small teams
How do you organize a shutdown with a small team?
In a small plant one person carries several roles, so combine roles that do not conflict, name a deputy for every role, and keep the permit issuer separate from the person whose work the permit covers.
The scaffolding coordinator role is described in turnaround scaffolding planning.
Most plants do not have a dedicated shutdown department. A team of six or seven people can run a short stop if the roles are mapped to people on purpose rather than by habit. The table shows one way to combine them. It does not set a size: a longer or higher-risk stop needs more people in the safety and permit roles first.
| Person | Roles they carry | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance manager | Shutdown manager and steering contact | Keep operational firefighting out of the stop; decide who deputizes |
| Planner | Planner, scheduler, materials planner | Planning load peaks before the stop; protect their time in the weeks before |
| Lead technician or foreman | Area lead for all crafts | Cannot be in two places; split areas when crews exceed what one person can see |
| Operations shift lead | Operations lead and restart sequence | Handover to maintenance needs a named person on every shift |
| Safety officer | Safety lead and permit coordinator | Do not let the person who issues permits also approve their own work |
| Buyer or storekeeper | Contracts, materials and cost reporting | Long-lead parts need an owner months before the stop |
For the planning side of a small stop, see manufacturing plant shutdown planning with a small team.
Rules
Which shutdown roles do US and UK rules address?
No rule prescribes a shutdown organization chart, but US and UK rules and guidance assign duties for contractor control, lockout, permits and handover that your role map must cover. 2,4,3
| Role | Rule or guidance | What it says | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contracts lead and shutdown manager | OSHA 1910.119(h), US covered processes | The host employer evaluates the safety performance of contractors, informs them of hazards and emergency plans, and controls their presence in covered areas; the contractor trains its people | OSHA 1910.119 |
| Contracts lead | HSE HSG159, managing contractors | A guide for employers that sets out how to manage contractors | HSE HSG159 |
| Safety lead and operations lead | OSHA 1910.147(f)(2)-(3) | Host and outside employers inform each other of their lockout or tagout procedures; group lockout and tagout is covered | OSHA 1910.147 |
| Permit coordinator | HSE HSG250, permit-to-work systems | Guidance for the petroleum, chemical and allied industries on permit-to-work systems, including training, competence, planning and monitoring | HSE HSG250 |
| Operations lead and area leads | HSE shift handover guidance | Handover has three elements: preparation, an exchange between outgoing and incoming staff, and a cross-check | HSE shift handover |
Visuals
Save the team charts
Two charts to share with the team. Click either for the full-size image.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What is a shutdown organization?
A temporary team layered over normal plant operations for the length of a stop, with one accountable leader, defined decision rights and a daily reporting rhythm.
Who leads a shutdown?
A shutdown manager is accountable for safety, schedule, cost and scope. A steering group above that person sets the objective, the window and the budget, and decides on large changes.
What does RACI stand for?
Responsible, Accountable, Consulted and Informed. The person who does the work is Responsible. One person owns the result and is Accountable. Others who give input are Consulted, and those told afterward are Informed.
How many people should a shutdown team have?
No public standard fixes a number. It depends on the size and risk of the stop. A small plant combines roles in a few people; a large turnaround adds area managers, discipline leads and a planning and controls group.
How do you run a shutdown with a small team?
Combine roles that do not conflict, name a deputy for each, and keep permit approval separate from the work it covers. See manufacturing plant shutdown planning.
What roles do contractors have?
Contractor supervisors run their crews and follow site rules. The host stays responsible for evaluating contractors, informing them of hazards and controlling their presence. 2,4 See contractor management in shutdowns.
Who owns the schedule?
The planner or scheduler keeps the baseline and reports the critical path and float; the shutdown manager decides what to do about them. 1 See shutdown scheduling.
How often should the team meet?
A short decision-focused meeting every day during the stop is common practice, plus a readiness review before it starts. See progress tracking and the daily meeting.
Sources
Sources
- US Government Accountability Office, GAO Schedule Assessment Guide: Best Practices for Project Schedules (GAO-16-89G, December 2015)
- OSHA, 29 CFR 1910.119, Process safety management of highly hazardous chemicals
- OSHA, 29 CFR 1910.147, The control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout)
- UK Health and Safety Executive, Managing contractors: a guide for employers (HSG159, 2nd edition, 2011)
- UK Health and Safety Executive, Guidance on permit-to-work systems: a guide for the petroleum, chemical and allied industries (HSG250, 2005)
- UK Health and Safety Executive, Human factors: Shift handover
Run the shutdown from one live plan
Book a demo and bring a typical shift. We will show tasks, readings, photos and findings in the module.