Quintessa undertakes risk assessments and performance assessments for complex systems based on the application of systems-level mathematical models. The system could be a part of the environment (e.g. an area of land contaminated by chemicals), an organism (e.g. the uptake of carbon dioxide by plants), an engineered structure (e.g. a natural gas storage facility) or, in principle, anything else.
The power of systems-level modelling for risk assessment and performance assessment lies in its ability to explore what is important in the system and how it behaves under different conditions or scenarios. This means that systems models can be used to quantify consequences under different conditions, which is invaluable in deciding how to improve management practices, for example the treatment of hazardous materials.
Because the model at the heart of an assessment is only an approximation of the real world, a lot of care is needed in formulating it. It is essential that it is a comprehensive representation of the system being examined, at the right level of detail. It follows that justifying the models and data, dealing with uncertainties, and communicating the analysis are key parts of systems assessment. In view of this, we carry out studies using established and internationally recognised structured approaches.