The Evidence Guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.

Overview of assessment

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

Assessors should ensure that candidates can:

liaise with stakeholders at various levels of complexity

plan, coordinate and monitor a diverse range of geotechnical activities

analyse, collate and report geotechnical investigation findings.

Context of and specific resources for assessment

This unit of competency is to be assessed in the workplace or simulated workplace environment through observation over time. The timeframe must allow for adequate assessment of operation under all normal and a range of abnormal conditions. Where this is not practical, additional assessment techniques must be used.

This unit of competency may be assessed with:

MSL915001A Provide information to customers

MSL915002A Schedule laboratory work for a small team

MSL935001A Monitor the quality of test results and data.

Resources may include:

access to sites, tools and equipment

enterprise procedures, sampling plans, test methods and equipment manuals.

Method of assessment

The following assessment methods are suggested:

review of work outputs over a period of time to ensure accurate and consistent work is obtained within required timelines

examples of completed workplace documentation

feedback from peers and supervisors

oral or written questioning.

In all cases, practical assessment should be supported by questions to assess underpinning knowledge and those aspects of competency which are difficult to assess directly.

Where applicable, reasonable adjustment must be made to work environments and training situations to accommodate ethnicity, age, gender, demographics and disability.

Access must be provided to appropriate learning and/or assessment support when required.

The language, literacy and numeracy demands of assessment should not be greater than those required to undertake the unit of competency in a work like environment.

This competency in practice

Industry representatives have provided the case study below to illustrate the practical application of this unit of competency and to show its relevance in a workplace setting.

Construction materials testing

The materials laboratory of a large local authority has been requested to investigate a 10 km section of road pavement that shows varying degrees of distress.

As the road is to be rebuilt and upgraded, the supervising engineer requires information to identify the reasons for the distress and to inform the design of the new pavement. The investigation will require test pits at 500 m intervals to allow examination of the underlying strata, in situ testing and sampling of existing pavement and sub-grade materials. The work will be performed by an experienced technician and a testing assistant, with supervision by a senior technician. The Council's Works Department will provide a backhoe with an operator and traffic management team. The engineer briefs the senior technician on the scope, purpose and requirements of the investigation and provides himher/ with the available documentation including maps, drawings and previous reports on the project. They refer to relevant ARMIS data, Falling Weight Deflection testing and surface defect mapping data. They carry out an on-site reconnaissance to confirm the available data and initial assumptions.

The senior technician conducts a desk study to ensure that he/she understands the full requirements of the project. He/she plans the on- and off-site activities including locating the relevant services and utilities, arranging for the necessary permits and preparing a health and safety management plan. He/she also plans the excavations, sampling and in situ testing and the laboratory testing regime. Finally, he/she prepares a GANTT chart showing all activities and the critical control points. The project is expected to take one week to complete.

He/she conducts a briefing session with the relevant stakeholders to nominate job roles and explain the required timelines. The scope of testing requires coring of UCS samples, cutting of asphalt slabs for MATTA testing, Material Quality testing (i.e. gradings, atterbergs and CBR's) as well as in situ DCP and moisture content testing. PAVSET data is also to be collected onsite.

On completion of the field activities, the senior technician checks the samples and then, if required, adjusts the testing schedule so as to capture enough relevant test data. Once all required testing has been completed and checked, the senior technician collates the test data and summarises it into a report for the project engineer. He/she then meets with the engineer who, after reviewing the report, finds that a 1 km section of the road needs further sampling and testing because this section is in a known flood plain. The engineer issues a new test request specifying that this section of road requires a sample and test pit every 100 m. Previously collected data is to be collated with these new samples.

The senior technician then organises for the added sampling and testing to be included into the laboratory's work schedule, mindful of any new time constraints. After completing the additional testing, he/she collates all the data into a final report for the engineer.

Required skills

Required skills include:

interpreting maps, site plans and drawings

planning and managing projects

identifying and locating site services, sampling and testing sites (e.g. using global positioning system (GPS))

identifying soil, rock and fill materials

observing, interpreting and reportingsite features and geotechnical conditions

maintaining accurate and complete records

interpreting test data

resolving problems appropriately

seeking advice about problems beyond technical competence from appropriate personnel

driving safely on- and off-road

working safely on construction sites aroundheavy equipment and earthmoving plant

report writing

using computer software to create/maintain databases and produce detailed reports

Required knowledge

Required knowledge includes:

the purposes and principles of geotechnical site investigation

identification and classification of materials

principles of planning and project management

engineering properties of soil and rock materials

representative sampling and testing (both in situ and laboratory)

uses of engineering materials in civil construction

civil construction techniques

relevant health, safety and environment requirements

The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.

Codes of practice

Where reference is made to industry codes of practice, and/or Australian/international standards, it is expected the latest version will be used

Standards, codes, procedures and/or enterprise requirements

Standards, codes, procedures and/or enterprise requirements may include:

Australian and international standards, such as:

AS ISO 1000-1998 The international system of units (SI) and its application

AS ISO 17025-2005 General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories

AS/NZS ISO 14000 Set:2005 Environmental management standards set

AS/NZS ISO 9000 Set:2008 Quality management systems set

calibration and maintenance schedules

enterprise recording and reporting procedures

environmental legislation and regulations

equipment manuals

equipment startup, operation and shutdown procedures

industry codes of practice

laboratory schedules

material, production and product specifications

National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) documents regarding construction materials testing

occupational health and safety (OHS) national standards and codes of practice

production and laboratory schedules

project management methodology

quality manuals

standard operating procedures (SOPs)

Site hazards may include:

Site hazards may include:

solar radiation, dust and noise

manual handling of heavy materials and equipment

working in/on trenches, confined spaces, wet and uneven surfaces, heights and slopes

vehicular and pedestrian traffic

Safety procedures

Safety procedures may include:

location of site services before investigations commence

use of material safety data sheets (MSDS)

use of personal protective equipment, such as hard hats, hearing protection, sunscreen, gloves, masks, goggles, coveralls, safety boots and high visibility clothing

handling, and storage of hazardous materials and equipment in accordance with labels, MSDS, manufacturer's instructions, enterprise procedures and regulations

regular cleaning of equipment and vehicles

machinery guards

signage, barriers, flashing lights and traffic control

Tools and equipment

Tools and equipment may include:

excavation equipment, hand and power augers

consumables, including sample bags and labels

documentation, including maps, plans, contract documents and worksheets

field test equipment, including sand replacement apparatus and dynamic cone penetrometer

still/video camera

communication equipment, such as two-way radio and mobile telephone

levelling equipment (dumpy and automatic levels)

Common site problems

Common site problems may include:

caving of the excavation

drilling difficulties

not knowing the requirements of the design engineer

not understanding the nature of the item being designed (e.g. retaining wall, piled structure and earthworks)

sample loss during retrieval

knowing when to stop a hole, or what and when to test and sample

misidentification of samples and sampling locations

equipment breakdown and breakage

environmental problems and issues, including site access, inclement weather, traffic, wildlife, vegetation and construction activities

Occupational health and safety (OHS) and environmental management requirements

OHS and environmental management requirements:

all operations must comply with enterprise OHS and environmental management requirements, which may be imposed through state/territory or federal legislation - these requirements must not be compromised at any time

all operations assume the potentially hazardous nature of samples and require standard precautions to be applied

where relevant, users should access and apply current industry understanding of infection control issued by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and State and Territory Departments of Health