Shell UK Exploration and Production, the operator in the North Sea for Shell and Esso, has developed an innovative approach to achieve more effective safety enhancement on some of their North Sea platforms whilst also cutting operating costs. The technique seeks to integrate the assessment, design and operation of the platforms more effectively. As a result, certain equipment standards have been improved but other systems have been removed entirely or substituted with procedural changes. The work has resulted in a ＇safety strategy＇ for the platforms and some innovative quantitative risk assessment techniques.