Training Support Materials Hazardous Areas (EEHA) | Hazardous Areas (EEHA) |
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Hazardous areas - Training the 'competent person'
The concern over competence was heightened by the trend away from regulations that were prescriptive-based towards performance-based. The performance-based approach places the 'duty of care' responsibilities on enterprises and individuals. This in turn is said to promote self-monitored quality assurance. It does not preclude third party scrutiny, as is still required for hazardous areas by legislation in most jurisdictions. Performance-based standards are said to result in greater compliance with requirements than in the case with the purely inspectoral methods, which accompany prescriptive-based regulations. To support the introduction of a performance-based approach a set of National Competency Standards for Electrical Equipment in Hazardous Areas (EEHA) was developed in 1996. This was undertaken through the National Utilities and Electrotechnology Industry Training Advisory Board (NUEITAB), as it was then (now EE-Oz Training Standards) with support from the Australian National Training Authority (ANTA). Standards Australia International participated intensively in the preparation of such set of Competency Standards, which were endorsed by ANTA in December 1996. A set of mirror standards was also produced and published by Standards Australia International as an Interim Standard, under the title "Competency Standards - Electrical equipment in hazardous areas" CS-EEHA-001 - 1998. It was a four part standard. For use in New Zealand training systems, an equivalent set of Competency (Unit) Standards was prepared by the Electrotechnology Industry Training Organisation (ETITO) to match the requirements of the New Zealand Qualifications Framework. These Unit Standards represent the same underpinning knowledge and practical skills. A specifically established Joint Committee P-012 endorsed their equivalence on 4 May 1999. They were registered with the New Zealand Qualifications Authority under the domain Electrical Equipment for Hazardous Areas. These equivalent set of Competency (Unit) Standards were formatted for the New Zealand Qualifications Framework by the Electrotechnology Industry Training Organisation (ETITO). The Unit Standards are registered with the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA), under the domain Electrical Equipment for Hazardous Areas. As mentioned above from the early stages, industries (mining and non-mining) were concerned with the correct implementation of the EEHA-Competency Standards. Through their representatives in the different Standards Australia Committees dealing with electrical equipment and installations in hazardous areas, they indicated the appropriateness of and need for, a specific Standards Committee to overview, endorse, and monitor the implementation of such Standards in Australia and New Zealand. As a result a Joint Committee P-012, EEHA-Competency Standards Advisory Panel was set up in 1998 to provide advice and assist the relevant bodies (industry, regulators and educators/ITAB/ITO) in the development and continuous review of the Competency Standards. This included assistance in the preparation of the National Training Package (comprising of all endorsed and non-endorsed components) and in monitoring its implementation, to assure that industry's needs and requirements are met. The objective of developing the Competency Standards was to set out the generic cross-industry competencies needed for work associated with electrical equipment for hazardous areas; the competencies are intended for use by any industry sector or enterprise with regards to explosion-protection related to the relevant functional areas. The Interim Standard was revised and a new two-part set of Competency Standards (AS/NZ 4716) was produced and released in early 2003. These are to be replicated into the EE-Oz Training Standards National Electrotechnology Training Package and equivalent EITO Unit Standards according to respective endorsement processes. This is the agreed arrangement between all the parties to P-012 and, ensures consistency and concurrence between the two sets of documents (this series of Standards and the National Electrotechnology Training Package in Australia and same in New Zealand). Maintenance and revision of these documents will always be carried out simultaneously through the Joint Standards Committee P-012, EEHA Competency Standards Advisory Panel, and amendments thereto processed in accordance with the respective organisational requirements. At this stage the AS/NZ4716 version of the Standards is the most current as the related content in the National Electrotechnology Training Package (UTE99 version 3) will not be updated until completion of the Review of the Training Package in early 2004. Given the resultant variance and lack of currency in the National Electrotechnology Training Package the P-012 Committee endorsed a recommendation that users of the Standards such as Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) be encouraged to use AS/NZ4716 in their assessment and training processes. They should be used as the primary source document until the National Electrotechnology Training Package was updated to reflect the new requirements. To encourage and, assist RTOs in supporting the use of AS/NZ4716, the key P-012 stakeholders became signatories to a Joint Announcement declaration in February 2003. A copy of the signed declaration is attached as a PDF. |
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