NEPIC 2011

Hylton Reid

Senior Engineer

Hazardous Areas

Agenda for Today

• Competence in Hazardous Areas• The NICEIC Hazardous Area Scheme• Legal Obligations

Basics

• This is a somewhat complicated subject, so please forgive me if I seem to jump around a bit

• We need to cover a lot of ground, some of which you will be familiar with, but I need to ensure that we all have the same basic understanding first

Competence 1

• Many people, when asked, would admit to being competent in some way

• What I wish to discuss is “Demonstrable Competence”

• I. E. Something which can be SHOWN or PROVEN

Competence 2

• What we really want is someone who can “do the job” safely and cost effectively.

• We aren’t terribly interested when things go well, only when they go wrong.

• In Hazardous Areas this doesn’t happen very often, but when it does the World hears about it!– Buncefield– BP

Competence 3

• What does being “Competent” mean?• It depends on the tasks being undertaken• The accepted definition is to have

– Current knowledge and– Practical experience

• One without the other is not sufficient

Competence 4

• The latest definition of Competence from ISO/IEC 17024 : 2010 is– A Demonstrated ability to apply Knowledge

and Skills• These obviously will vary from task to

task, and hence there is no universal answer– A person may be competent to work on

domestic installations, but that would NOT suffice for Hazardous Areas

Competence 5

• What is available?– CompEx by EEMUA/JTL– Competence Professional by Sira– The new IECEx Personal Competence

Scheme– Several other, individual, schemes.

Competence 6

• They all have weaknesses:– They are for Individuals– They don’t examine Practical Experience in a

thorough manner

• What industry wants is an organisation that can “Do the job” required

Competence 8

• The requirements for being competent has always appeared in Legislation, but now appear in other, more workable, documents.– BS EN IEC 60079 Part 14 (Installation)– BS EN IEC 60079 Part 17 (Inspection)– The IP/APEA Guide for Filling Stations

The NICEIC HA Scheme

• It is an Extension to Enrolment for work undertaken by electrical contractors in Hazardous Areas

• Only available to existing Contractors• Need to have a “responsible” person called the

Principal Duty Holder• Need to have sufficient “competent” persons to

be responsible for the work being carried out• It is the only UKAS Accredited scheme for the

assessment of Hazardous Areas electrical contractors

NICEIC Assessment 1

The NICEIC Scheme has 35 points of measurement, in addition to a Technical Assessment of recent work which has been completed by the contractor

They need to formally appoint someone to be responsible for the safety of their work, QS(HA)

All test results need to be checked and verified

Test equipment has provable accuracy

Complete and accurate documentation is produced for the work and provided to the customer

NICEIC Assessment 2

Using only trained personnel, with records of training and experienceThere is “suitable and sufficient” supervision of the workforce and their tasks by the QS(HA)Sufficient, correct, up-to-date “Standards/Codes of Practice” are available at the workplace for reference Knowledge of the various requirements, e.g. Inspection & Testing, EWR, Safe Isolation, BS 7671, ATEX, DSEAR, IEC, IP/APEA, etc is soundFailure to meet any of the criteria could result in deferment or suspension

A Review of Legislation

Not a comprehensive review, but just to summarise the legal framework under which we operate

The Electricity at Work Regulations - 1989

EWR

The Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmosphere Regulations – 2002

DSEAR

Health & Safety at Work

• Who is responsible for this?– The HSE?– The Contractor?– The Design Consultant?– The Supplier?

• On any site it is the Responsible Person for that site, sometimes referred to as the Employer or Duty Holder

Electricity at Work Regulations (EWR)

• Regulation 4 (2)– As may be necessary to prevent danger, all

systems shall be maintained so as to prevent, so far as is reasonably practicable, such danger

– For electrical equipment installed in Potentially Explosive Atmospheres the requirement is for it to be inspected at intervals not exceeding 3 years

Electricity at Work Regulations (EWR)

• Regulation 16– No person shall be engaged in any work

activity where technical knowledge or experience is necessary to prevent DANGER or, where appropriate, INJURYunless he POSSESSES such knowledge or experience, or is under such supervision as may be appropriate having regard to the nature of the work

• This says it all!

DSEAR 1

• UK Version of ATEX Directive 137Places responsibility with the EMPLOYER (Duty Holder) to carry out a Risk Assessment of their workplace to identify the risks from fires or explosions, classify them into Zones and record the results

To ensure the risks are eliminated or minimised and that all equipment installed is suitable for the application

DSEAR 2

• Before any workplace containing areas classified as hazardous is used for the first time, the employer shall ensure that its overall explosion safety is verified by a person who is competent in the field of explosion protection as a result of their experience or any professional training or both

Under HASAWA, EWR, DSEAR..

• A Responsible Person on the site has to ensure the site is safe for its purpose and that persons are not placed at risk to their health and safety

• If you employ a Contractor to do work for you, does it absolve your responsibility?

• NO. • As the employer You are still the

responsible legal entity

Under HASAWA, EWR, DSEAR..

• A person may accept results from another person, provided it is reasonable for him to do so

• If the person providing the results is not Competent in the area of work, is it reasonable for you to accept their results?

Why use Assessed Contractors

A confidence in their capabilityThey are required to send the correct documentation for the work completedSaves you from having to determine their competence to undertake the workCovered by our “Guarantee of Standards” and “Complaints” SchemesKnowledge that their Insurance, Control of Documentation, Training, Technical Capability, etc, is up-to-date

Documentation

ASDA 2003

ASDA 2003

Filling station fire 2005

Filling station fire 2005

Filling station fire 2005

Spot the Mistake

NICEIC Scheme Costs

• Application fee £290• Assessment fee £350• That’s it!

– All other costs are those which a competent organisation should already have taken care of

Costs 1

• Cost savings can be made by:– Not employing qualified electricians– Not having accurate test equipment – Not carrying out all tests – only 10%– Not producing complete documentation for

the work undertaken– Not carrying Public Liability insurance– Not having copies of Guidance documents

Costs 2

• There are a number of “Trust a Trader” organisations which register contractors for fees of about £500.

• The contractors write their own references and are listed WITHOUT any assessment.

• The NICEIC scheme costs about the same and includes an annual assessment visit to site for each contractor on the roll.

Terminology 1

• What is the difference between a “Statutory Instrument”, a recognised BS or IEC “Standard” and a “Code of Practice” or “Guide”? – A Statutory Instrument is LAW– A Standard describes current best practice, as

does a Guide– A Guide may often be prepared for a

particular industry or interest group

Terminology 2

• The Highway Code is a guidance document for drivers

• If you commit an offence you will be prosecuted under the Road Traffic Act, where failure to follow the Highway Code will be used as evidence of failing to follow good practice

Prosecution

• If you fail to follow the requirements of the International and European Standard for Hazardous Area installations and an incident occurs, a prosecution may be forthcoming under the Electricity at Work Regulations or the Health and Safety at Work Act– See the recent prosecutions for Buncefield!

EWR Regulation 29

Regulation 29 of the EWR lists a possible defence against prosecution

The Regulation does not apply not all Regulations, only those which are specified

One of those which is specified, and to which it does apply, is Regulation 16, “Competence”

EWR Regulation 29

Provided that you can demonstrate that you have taken all reasonable steps and exercised all due diligence to avoid committing the offence, that is your defence

If there are specially approved, UKAS Certified, contractors available and you choose not to use them, you cannot claim that you have exercised all due diligence

End

Thank you

Any Questions?