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.

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

A person who demonstrates competency in this unit must be able to provide evidence of their ability to:

analyse manual handling requirements and risks in jobs

distinguish between ergonomically sound and unsound movement

analyse manual handling movements and risks for an individual

relate manual handling requirements to job efficiency.

Context of and specific resources for assessment

Assessment of performance must be undertaken in a workplace using or implementing one or more competitive systems and practices.

Access may be required to:

workplace procedures and plans relevant to work area

specifications and documentation relating to planned, currently being implemented, or implemented changes to work processes and procedures relevant to the assessee

documentation and information in relation to production, waste, overheads and hazard control/management

reports from supervisors/managers

case studies and scenarios to assess responses to contingencies.

Method of assessment

A holistic approach should be taken to the assessment.

Competence in this unit may be assessed by using some combination of the following to generate evidence:

demonstration in the workplace

workplace projects

suitable simulation

case studies/scenarios (particularly for assessment of contingencies, improvement scenarios, and so on)

targeted questioning

reports from supervisors, peers and colleagues (third-party reports)

portfolio of evidence.

In all cases it is expected that practical assessment will be combined with targeted questioning to assess underpinning knowledge.

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

Guidance information for assessment

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

Required skills

Required skills include:

communicating with others about work processes and jobs

identifying ergonomically sound and unsound movements both at a general level and related to individual capability

analysing manual handling processes

working cooperatively with others

demonstrating or arranging to have demonstrated ergonomically correct movements

applying basic mathematics

solving problems

Required knowledge

Required knowledge includes:

relevant occupational health and safety (OHS) Acts and regulations as applied to manual handling

principles of job and work method design as applied to efficient and safe movement

principles of work analysis

principles of ergonomics/safe movement

aids than can assist with or substitute for manual handling

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.

Competitive systems and practices

Competitive systems and practices may include, but are not limited to:

lean operations

agile operations

preventative and predictive maintenance approaches

monitoring and data gathering systems, such as Systems Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) software, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, Materials Resource Planning (MRP) and proprietary systems

statistical process control systems, including six sigma and three sigma

Just in Time (JIT), kanban and other pull-related operations control systems

supply, value, and demand chain monitoring and analysis

5S

continuous improvement (kaizen)

breakthrough improvement (kaizen blitz)

cause/effect diagrams

overall equipment effectiveness (OEE)

takt time

process mapping

problem solving

run charts

standard procedures

current reality tree

Competitive systems and practices should be interpreted so as to take into account:

the stage of implementation of competitive systems and practices

the size of the enterprise

the work organisation, culture, regulatory environment and the industry sector

Procedures

Procedures may include:

work instructions

standard operating procedures

formulas/recipes

batch sheets

temporary instructions and similar instructions provided for the smooth running of the plant

good operating practice as may be defined by industry codes of practice (e.g. good manufacturing practice (GMP) and Responsible Care)

government regulations

Procedures may be:

written, verbal, computer-based or in some other format

Manual handling hazards

Manual handling hazards may include:

loads that pose a risk of injury

ergonomically unsound movements

hazard requirements as defined by relevant OHS Acts and regulations, industry standards and best practice

Ergonomically unsound movements

Ergonomically unsound movements may include:

awkward and repetitive movements

carrying, pushing, pulling or lifting of heavy loads

carrying or movement against hard, sharp, slippery or other difficult to grasp loads

Ergonomically unsound movements should be assessed against the capabilities of individual workers as what is a sound movement for one worker may be unsound for others depending on physique and individual condition

Ergonomically sound movements

Ergonomically sound movements are movements which decrease the risk of injury. Sound movements will vary according to the load and individual. Examples include:

keeping loads close to the body and near the person's centre of gravity

using diagonal foot positions for lifting

moving loads at waist height rather than directly from the floor