| Description | Tape 1 Side A: JAMES SMITH born 19 June 1941 Brechin Angus. Currently retired. Second of four children. Details re siblings. Father a farm servant, later manager. Mother died at 47. Father lived to 85. He gave up smoking. Mentions own interest in golf, course next to current home. Paternal family: knew grandparents well. Details. Was football-mad. Grandfather worked for Briggs of Dundee, died in accident. First experience of a death. Maternal family, Taylors: recalls visiting, hunting game etc. Details re grandparents, times with them, names. Recalls extended family gatherings in grandparents' small house every weekend. Mentions activities with own grandchildren. Details re childhood home in Edzell. Education: went to Inverkeiler Primary, Laurencekirk Secondary School. Describes mother. She had long illness, spent long time in hospital. Example of her kindness. Parents were strict. Comments on discipline today. Recalls own attitude at school, skill at football, captain of cup-winning team. Recalls influences in football. Unable to play for team in Aberdeen because parents couldn't afford transport etc. Later became professional footballer with Keith in Highland League, possible for Scotland schoolboys. Played as striker. Recalls being sent off first time seen playing by wife. Married 1964. Details re sons, including twins, names. All three worked at Glaxo. Twins each had baby within few days. Was fanatical about football. Details re signing for Keith, payment, media coverage. Was local favourite son. Describes own playing style, ability to look after self. Reference to Ivor Smith. Importance of being on top of opposite number. Had reputation as hard, but clean player. Feelings about attitude on playing field. Details re football activities through week, routines.
Tape 1 Side B: Importance of sport from early age, recalls hours of practice, aspirations. Reason for being Hibs (Hibernians) supporter when family supported Celtic. Recalls going to football with father. Describes approach to game, feelings about lazy players, players not working. Comments on attitudes to work. Recalls requirements of work in management. Mentions attitudes in offshore industry. Story of the negative attitude of a particular player. Mentions wife's achievements, skills. She runs golf course. Recalls religious activities in youth. Father a hard worker. He was gassed (during war). Recalls people who didn't want to work. Relationship with father, mother. Describes father. Recalls death of mother. Details re her. Mentions work with oil industry in US, supporting mother. Wanted to join Navy but mother wouldn't allow it. Recalls advice to become engineering inspector after time as professional footballer. Left school at 15, did apprenticeship as fitter/welder with W&D Syme, Brechin. Offered many jobs because popular as footballer. Feelings about fame. Describes own character. Recalls warning re pride. Recalls father's attitude. Wife's attitude re good listeners. Recalls local Edzell characters from childhood. Explains own identity as Northeaster, British rather than Scottish. Mentions English grandmother. Did a lot of work for Glaxo in England. Comments on English, Scots. Worked in industry as individual, had to accept situation. Went to Glaxo aged 23. Played professional football part-time from 21 to 29. Football career ended because of lack of prospects for big-time, and job offers in Glaxo. Difficult to end football career. Details. Recalls last game of last season as professional, scoring equaliser. Never kicked a ball since. Reluctant to watch football since.
Tape 2 Side A: Recalls welding apprenticeship. Background to getting welding job for early warning RAF station at Edzell 1961-2. Good money. Background to employment with Glaxo as Welding & Maintenance Engineer 1962-78. Recalls work on routine maintenance, construction work during company expansion of Glaxo factory. Not treated differently because of football reputation. Invited to be supervisor. Explains approach to work, getting best out of people. Given training in supervision. Details. Recalls brilliant engineer who couldn't delegate. Recalls social life, meeting wife. Reference to Co-opie (Co-operative). Details re wife, from Mitchell family. Mentions Montrose Small-bore Rife Club, wife junior Angus champion. Could never beat her. She was a shorthand typist. Recalls own early interest in gas. Became Inspector with Glaxo. Great job. Enjoyed decision-making aspect. Gives example of Edinburgh job where machinery was in disastrous state through use of cheap equipment, inadequate inspection. Explains problem, also encountered offshore, when people don't know equipment properly. Compares with own understanding. Example of reaction to a gas leak, correct procedures. Importance of intuition with machinery etc. Explains tolerance standards at Glaxo. Mentions Glaxo's main outputs, company's foundation by New Zealand chemists 1952. Own role was to inspect product-making machinery, eg for leaks. Details. Mentions unpopularity as inspector. Recalls first encounters with oil industry people, first thoughts of joining the industry, interview with Occidental re job as Safety Inspection Engineer 1978. Details re departure from Glaxo. Explains decision to leave. Family home was in Montrose, had to move to Aberdeen - turned out to be unnecessary. Company moved to Dyce. Aberdeen personal accommodation details. Comments on sons' attitude to football.
Tape 2 Side B: Mentions family and own political attitudes. Has never been a union-type person. Explains. Recalls trip to London for white-collar workers' meeting. Reference Clive Jenkins. Own attitude to resolving problems. Recalls own position during a strike. Glaxo paid well. Details. Mentions barrel of a barbecue that comes from a gas pipeline. Appointed Safety Inspection Engineer, Occidental 1978. Recalls main office at Causewayend, Aberdeen. Mentions other premises. Recalls colleagues in Occidental Safety Management Team. Reference to BNOC (British National Oil Corporation). Manager was Jack Donaldson. On arrival found piles of offshore certification, that had never been looked at. Recalls atmosphere in Oxy, amount of money around; less controlled than at Glaxo. Piper Alpha, Claymore both on stream at the time. Worked on certification of lifting gear. Explains. Recalls haphazard organisation of certification at time. Details re cranes, certification regulations etc. Platforms and equipment had to be certified by Department of Energy. Example of a failing in the system involving cracks in a crane leg. Mentions permanent Lloyds assessors who were on platforms, jobs for the boys situation, King Wilkinson, Bechtel. Details re 6-monthly inspections, verification, certification. Lot of untested equipment. Recalls faulty safety valve equipment on Piper Alpha, hostile response of OIM (Offshore Installation Manager) when this was reported to him. Recalls prima donna situation on Piper. Compares situation with today, qualifications required for jobs. Comments on questionable value of paper qualifications. Oxy looked after staff. Comments on quality of pipes. Details re gas leaks, numbers of safety officers, their inadequacy for situations they were placed in. Explains problems with training, skills of safety people.
Tape 3 Side A: Safety officers (cont'd). Further comments re their qualifications for job. Gives example from 1985 on Piper Alpha when boss was Colin Seaton, OIM on Piper when it went up. Details re him. Background to becoming Safety Officer on Piper, Claymore. Details re job. Recalls example of poor standard of repairs, example of people not knowing their equipment. Comments on likelihood of disaster anywhere on North Sea. There were too many people who were prima donnas. Example of previous OIM on Piper. Comments on Armand Hammer, his reputation. Explains feeling that middle management was weak in company. Explains own work routine on Piper, Claymore, and in Peterhead. Impression of condition of Piper Alpha. Did topside inspections. Details. Mentions extra equipment placed on Piper. Disaster could have happened on Claymore a year earlier. Recalls own unpopularity for shutting down platform. Details. Explains refusal of company to shut down Piper. Comments on issue of permits on Piper, possibility of precautions being bypassed, issues re permit, gas monitors before time of disaster. Situation at time of disaster when gas fuelled fire. Should have been on Piper at time of disaster. Explains situation re gas valve that caused explosion, questions that should have been asked. Failure in communication. Explains what own actions, routine would have been in time before disaster. Details re Colin Seaton, his qualities as OIM. Recalls fantastic team on Claymore. Explains work routine. Didn't like Piper because of attitude there. Explains. Compares with Claymore. Piper like a scrapyard. Further details re Seaton, his personality. Comments on his leadership. Mentions helicopter ditching incident. Reference to Jim Vickers.
Tape 3 Side B: Further details re Colin Seaton in times of crisis. Sent to check building of vessel Tharos, found lack of appropriate certification. Mentions lack of Oxy people there, offers of holidays when gaps discovered etc. Reference to Sedco. Details re final certification. Reference to Government Regulations 1019, Health & Safety Regulations 1974 etc. Further details re inspection of offshore equipment. Appointed Safety Operator, Occidental (Caledonia), Claymore 'A' Platform 1985. Explains liaison with standby vessels, routines, daily reports of sea state, issue of permits etc. Recalls arguments re possibility of work, pressure from construction superintendent, companies. Never pressure from OIM. Explains own sense of priorities. Explains distribution of modules on platform. Situation re men working over side, working dangerously. Own attitude to importance of discipline. Recalls football days. Details re onshore/offshore shift routine. Impact of routine on home, family life. Mentions later work as Safety Manager when Piper accommodation was lifted from seabed. Recalls news, when offshore, of attempted murder of son. Details. Changes to onshore/offshore shift patterns an improvement. Details. Had plenty of time with sons, wife when at home. Mentions wife's work at Golf Club since 1980, her community support. Details. Comments on attitudes to alcohol, company's approach, problems of some people. Recalls suicide of offshore worker who was on drugs and had problems at home. Details re procedures followed. Comments on effect of drugs. Recalls Tharos-Piper bridge collapse, death of 3 men, involvement in long subsequent case. Explains shortcuts that led to accident, lack of routine checks etc. Details re recovery of bodies. Explains own approach to crisis situations. Further details re suicide case.
Tape 4 Side A: Piper Alpha disaster: was due to go offshore to platform on 5 July. Details re accident to ankle on golf course, circumstances leading to delay going offshore. Replacement on Piper died. Comments on situation, what might have happened, own possible reactions in event of being involved in disaster; possibility, which has never been mentioned, of getting out on unlit flare and jumping. Recalls going onto Piper after disaster. Both flares stacks still there. Reference to Red Adair. Comments on people going into accommodation area to await rescue. Problem with unfamiliarity of many people with outside of platform. Details re access to flare. Comments on actions taken by people on board, normal lifeboat routines that should have been followed. Comments on RGIT (Robert Gordon Institute of Technology) lifeboat drills. Some people don't put on lifejackets properly. Own approach to training. Mentions height of helicopter deck on Piper, people who jumped. Recalls friend who went down leg, died in rescue craft after going back for others. Own second choice would have been to go down the leg - familiar with area. Details. Speculates on situation on Piper, possibility of panic. Recalls times of small fires on platform, reaction of people. Details re a fire in Claymore galley, calm reaction of Jim Vickers. Comments on suitability, state of fire-fighting vessel Tharos. Comments on Claymore actions, supply of gas not being shut off. Feelings about disaster in retrospect. Recalls first hearing news of disaster morning after, reaction of people. Feelings about counselling etc. Reaction of wife. Recalls feelings offshore afterwards, changes in company. Reaction of people to Oxy staff.
Tape 4 Side B: Feeling about going to wreck of Piper Alpha six weeks later. Had to check safety before Red Adair could go on. Details. Watched Piper being toppled from Claymore. Describes remains of Piper, melted drill floor etc. Platform was not level. Helicopter able to land on it. Explains access arrangements from sea. Explains mixed feelings when Piper toppled. Compares feelings for Piper and Claymore platforms. Later involved in preparations for raising accommodation from seabed. Details re Herrema crane used. Own work carried on after Piper. Feelings about working on Claymore. Changes in attitude of senior management. Own attitude to work remained as before. Reference to file of papers. Recalls own relationship with OIMs, their negative attitude to safety rulings, pressure not to shut down. Less pressure after Piper. Stopped work after an accidental fall during a fire exercise on Claymore, simulating Piper scenario. Details re accident, resulting deafness in one ear, medical verdict. Went on long-term disability. Details re financial situation, insurance difficulties, court case, settlement out of court. Oxy was good, but not insurance company. Details. Returned home. Loved going offshore. Compares with enjoyment of football. No regrets. Recalls going through case with lawyer, use of photographic evidence etc. Current life. Started golf. Comments on own golfing ability. Plays regularly. Mentions grandchildren. Attitude to current situation. Career activities in retrospect. Reference to two-way breaking system. Acknowledges contribution of wife to career. Going to Spain for Ruby Wedding. Details.
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