This unit of competency covers the skills and knowledge required to use an item of equipment which is operated with limited application of knowledge.

This unit of competency applies to all persons who have the responsibility for using equipment where they are not required to have any significant understanding of the equipment or the process. Where greater levels of understanding and interaction are required, then the appropriate MSMOPS2# series operations unit of competency should be used.

In a typical situation the operator may be using, for example, a packaged chilled water refrigeration unit to supply chilled water to the plant. The operator uses simple controls and responds to fault alarms built into the equipment. Even though the equipment may be very sophisticated (e.g. using high-speed compressors and computerised monitoring and control equipment) the operator interface is relatively simple. The operator is expected to simply regard this equipment as a black box – they may know what it does, but little detail on how it does it.

This unit of competency has been written to apply to fluids as well as solids and may be applied wherever ‘black box’ equipment is used.

This unit of competency applies to an individual working alone or as part of a team or group and working in liaison with other shift team members and the control room operator, as appropriate.

No licensing, legislative or certification requirements apply to this unit at the time of publication.

Evidence required to demonstrate competence in this unit must be relevant to and satisfy all of the requirements of the elements and performance criteria and demonstrate the ability to:

recognise and control hazards

monitor key variables as relevant to the equipment, including one or more of:

equipment production outputs

equipment operating conditions

recognise deviations and/or abnormal operating conditions and take specified action/alert the appropriate individuals

identify routine problems and report or take corrective action, where appropriate.

Evidence must be provided that demonstrates knowledge of:

hazards and hazard controls specific to the work area

correct methods of operating and controlling the equipment

process parameters, limits and alarms (e.g. temperature, pressure, flow and pH) to the extent relevant to operating this equipment

routine problems that may arise in the job/work environment and corrective action appropriate to the problem cause.

The unit should be assessed holistically and the judgement of competence based on a holistic assessment of the evidence.

The collection of performance evidence:

should occur over a range of situations which include typical disruptions to normal, smooth operation of an operating plant

will typically include the use of an appropriate industrial item of equipment requiring demonstration of operation, start and stop procedures and responding to problems

may use industry-based simulation for all or part of the unit particularly where safety, lack of opportunity or significant cost is an issue.

Assessment should occur in operational workplace situations. Where this is not possible, or where personal safety or environmental damage are limiting factors, assessment must occur in a sufficiently rigorous simulated environment reflecting realistic operational workplace conditions. This must cover all aspects of workplace performance, including environment, task skills, task management skills, contingency management skills and job role environment skills.

Assessment in a simulated environment should use evidence collected from one or more of:

walk-throughs

pilot plant operation

demonstration of skills

industry based case studies/scenarios

‘what ifs’.

Knowledge evidence may be collected concurrently with performance evidence (provided a record is kept) or through an independent process, such as workbooks, written assessments or interviews (provided a record is kept).

Assessment processes and techniques must be appropriate to the language, literacy and numeracy requirements of the work being performed and the needs of the candidate.

Conditions for assessment must include access to all tools, equipment, materials and documentation required, including relevant workplace procedures, product and manufacturing specifications associated with this unit.

The regulatory framework will be reflected in workplace policies and procedures and is not required to be independently assessed.

Foundation skills are integral to competent performance of the unit and should not be assessed separately.

As a minimum, assessors must satisfy the Standards for Registered Training Organisations 2015 assessor requirements.

This section describes those language, literacy, numeracy and employment skills that are essential to performance.

Foundation skills essential to performance are explicit in the performance criteria of this unit of competency.

Operations