Welding & Safety Reference Manuals to get an Overhaul
SEAN KINDER, CMPA’s Document Officer reports on the progress of the Perform Basic Cutting & Welding and Work Safely Reference Manuals.
GOOD quality reference manuals are considered a very important resource in developing industries. Some of the existing documents which I have read regarding safety in the workplace have been too complex, especially when reading Government Regulations and Australian Standards. My aim as the Document Officer is to make these reference manuals as simple as possible and in turn to decrease the number of incidents.
Over the past couple of months, I have been updating a reference manual in the “cutting, bending and welding of materials”, which was originally developed by Quantec Solutions as a training package. The past few years, hasn’t seen much change in the techniques of cutting and welding, however the safety concerned with the process has advanced dramatically to reduce the quantity and magnitude of incidents within the workplace.
In order to research safety of welding and cutting, I have contacted a number of suppliers of equipment, especially All Welding and Engineering Supplies, Clayton. This was to find out information on what sort of clothing and protection must be worn while handling the welding materials, and what integrated systems had been engineered into the equipment such as: voltage limitation devices within the welding machine, Flash-back Arrestors (FBA) and the Adflow powered air respirator, a mask used in confined spaces or when welding hazardous substances.
Although the internet is an excellent source of information, it can be difficult finding a quality citation. This conflict is often overcome, by confirming with as many people within the industry as practical or by directly calling a specialist organisation (SAI Global or Worksafe Victoria).
Regarding welding and cutt ing as processes, I have been constantly communicating with Carl Hussell of Quantec Solutions and Tony Corra of AllSteel Processing. Both have been extremely supportive when sharing their knowledge. Tony gave me a general in-site into the welding process, including the equipment used, how to correctly set up and start up and different welding techniques used to complete different tasks. From this I was able to collect samples and photos for the reference manual.
Carl, a member of the Welding Technology Institute of Australia, was able to share his knowledge of technical theory and legislation, which was very important when discussing the compliance documentation and writing whole sections. Many parts of the manual have been contributed by Quantec Solutions, especially regarding the welding, cutting and bending techniques, the environmental impacts of using the equipment and environment friendly material disposal behaviours.
Work Safely is the next reference manual which I will be updating, adhering to the new compliance codes of SkillsDMC and the Acts, Regulations and Australian Standards which have been amended and/or superseded since it’s last review. As occupational health and safety is a very key element of any organisation, I am currently visiting sites, looking for examples and information of safe procedure and practice.
The most common safety procedure documents seen so far are the use of the JSA/JSEA ( Job Safety and Environmental Analysis); Take 5 – Stay Alive procedure, Issue Resolutions forms and the Risk Matrix. By visiting Conundrum Holdings Northern Quarries in Epping, while learning about the process of crushing, I was able to obtain information on: shot fi ring, isolation systems, guards and rails and how they enforce their safety policies and procedures with use of a thorough site induction.
As TRUenergy deals with highly flammable crushed coal from the Latrobe Valley, they have a very well-defined set of safety processes before employees start a designated job. These safety processes include strict use of the procedures listed above.
Correct and up-to-date training is considered a very important component of industry development and the CMPA regards its production of manuals one of its greatest assets. The improved “cut, weld and bend” training package, satisfying the new compliance documentation will be available in the coming weeks.
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