Description

Pre Requisites

Application

A person undertaking this unit of competency would be normally nominated to assume the responsibility of emergency team leader.

Performance Criteria

Required Skills & Knowledge

•     leadership skills
•     organisation skills
•     planning skills
•     team management skills
•     hazard awareness and safety awareness skills
•     communication skills.

•     characteristics of fires and fuel types
•     hazard identification, assessment and control of risk
•     principles and procedures of self contained breathing apparatus (SCBA)
•     search and rescue techniques (including self rescue techniques)
•     relevant facility fire management and safety systems
•     communication systems
•     emergency response plans
•     teamwork principles and techniques.

Range Statement

Codes of practice/ standards    
Where reference is made to industry codes of practice, and/or Australian/international standards, the latest version must be used.

Context    

Those persons who normally operate or are based permanently or regularly assigned to an onshore or offshore installation or facility and lead an emergency response team would require this unit of competency.

This unit could be applied to any of the following installations or facilities:

•     onshore/offshore rig/installation
•     island based facility
•     floating production vessel or platform
•     onshore production, processing and/or storage facilities
•     pipeline easements
•     maintenance bases.

This competency covers process manufacturing plants which may involve workplace hazards such as:

•     chemicals and hazardous materials
•     gases and liquids under pressure
•     moving machinery
•     materials handling
•     working at heights, in restricted or confined spaces, or environments subjected to heat, noise, dusts or vapours.

Emergency situations may include:

•     accidents
•     fires
•     chemical or oil spills
•     gas leak or vapour emission
•     utilities failure
•     bomb scares.

Equipment may include:

•     fire extinguishing agents and water curtains
•     hoses
•     mobile extinguishers
•     stretchers
•     personal protective clothing and equipment such as:
•     chemical protective clothing
•     distress alarms
•     structural fire protective clothing
•     self contained breathing apparatus (SCBA)
•     communication equipment.

Emergency extinguishing media may include:

•     water
•     foam
•     extinguishing powder
•     gaseous extinguishing agents
•     vapourising liquids
•     other fire extinguishing substances.

On-scene hazards may include:

•     smoke, darkness and heat
•     electricity
•     gas
•     structural hazards
•     structural collapse
•     industrial - machinery, equipment, product
•     hazardous products and materials
•     unauthorised personnel.

Emergency strategies and tactics may include:

•     direct attack
•     indirect attack
•     combination attack
•     exposure protection
•     internal/offensive attacks
•     confining the spread of incident
•     rescuing occupants
•     cooling the fuels
•     removal of fuels
•     interrupting the chemical chain reaction
•     exclusion of oxygen.

Relevant facility fire management and safety systems include:

•     fire management systems
•     communication systems
•     relevant facility emergency management and contingency response plans.

Relevant legislative and safety case management principles and agreements must be adhered to.

Health, safety and environment (HSE)  

 All operations to which this unit applies are subject to stringent health, safety and environment requirements, which may be imposed through State or Federal legislation, and these must not be compromised at any time.  Where there is an apparent conflict between Performance Criteria and HSE requirements, the HSE requirements take precedence.

Evidence Guide

Overview of assessment    

Assessment of this unit should include demonstrated competence on actual plant and equipment in a work environment.  The unit will be assessed in as holistic a manner as is practical and may be integrated with the assessment of other relevant units of competency.  Assessment will occur over a range of situations which will include disruptions to normal, smooth operation.
Simulation may be required to allow for assessment of parts of this unit.  Simulation should be based on the actual plant and will include walk-throughs of the relevant competency components.  Simulations may also include the use of case studies/scenarios and role plays.
This unit of competency requires a significant body of knowledge which will be assessed through questioning and the use of what-if scenarios both on the plant (during demonstration of normal operations and walk-throughs of abnormal operations) and off the plant.

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit  

 Competence must be demonstrated in the ability to recognise and analyse potential situations requiring action and then in implementing appropriate corrective action.  The emphasis should be on the ability to minimise the effects of the critical situation.
Consistent performance should be demonstrated. In particular look for:

•     ability to work effectively as a team and as a team leader
•     recognition of the behaviour of fire and other emergency situations
•     impact of emergency tactics
•     evidence that emergency operations are conducted in accordance with the organisation's safe work practices.

These aspects may be best assessed using a range of scenarios/case studies/what ifs as the stimulus with a walk through forming part of the response.  These assessment activities should include a range of problems, including new, unusual and extreme situations which may have been generated from the past incident history of the plant, incidents on similar plants around the world, hazard analysis activities (e.g. HAZOP) and similar sources.
 

Context of and specific resources for assessment  

 Assessment will require access to an operating plant over an extended period of time, or a suitable method of gathering evidence of operating ability over a range of situations.  A bank of scenarios/case studies/what-ifs will be required as will a bank of questions which will be used to probe the reasoning behind the observable actions.

Method of assessment   

 The skills and knowledge contained within this unit of competency could be utilised as a normal part of a person's responsibilities and duties.
In all plants it may be appropriate to assess this unit concurrently with relevant teamwork and communication units.
It would be expected that a person undertaking this competency would have completed or be able to demonstrate competence in the following unit of competency before undertaking this unit:

•     MSAPMOHS212A Undertake first response to fire incidents
•     PMAOHS213B Undertake fire control and emergency rescue.

Guidance information for assessment  

 Assessment processes and techniques must be culturally appropriate and appropriate to the oracy, language and literacy capacity of the assessee and the work being performed.