SFIAQUA303C
Coordinate stock handling activities

This unit of competency involves coordinating a range of stock handling activities, such as cleaning, moving and grading for cultured or held stock. It may also involve seeding of half pearls in molluscs. It covers interpreting instructions, selecting equipment and method of operation, data entry and analysis and conveying information. Skills to coordinate staff are covered by RTE3704A Coordinate worksite activities.Licensing, legislative, regulatory or certification requirements may apply to this unit. Therefore it will be necessary to check with the relevant state or territory regulators for current licensing, legislative or regulatory requirements before undertaking this unit.

Application

Licences may be required if operating:

load-shifting equipment, including forklifts

vehicles

vessels.

All enterprise or workplace procedures and activities are carried out according to relevant government regulations, licensing and other compliance requirements, including occupational health and safety (OHS) guidelines, food safety and hygiene regulations and procedures, and ecologically sustainable development (ESD) principles.

Equipment operation, maintenance, repairs and calibrations are undertaken in a safe manner that conforms to manufacturer instructions. Appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) is selected, checked used and maintained.


Elements and Performance Criteria

ELEMENT

PERFORMANCE CRITERIA

1. Plan and organise for stock handling

1.1. Handling specifications are interpreted and confirmed with senior personnel.

1.2. Labour and resource requirements for stock handling are confirmed with senior personnel and arranged.

1.3. Risk factors which could affect the health of stock during handling are identified and plans made to minimise risk.

1.4. Operational guidelines to achieve desired handling objectives are planned and communicated effectively to staff.

2. Organise for handling

2.1. Equipment is collected and checked for serviceability.

2.2. Repairs and calibrations are made to sub-standard equipment.

2.3. Transport and holding arrangements are confirmed.

2.4. Safety precautions for handling live stock are implemented.

2.5. Handling activities are planned to minimise stock damage and stress.

3. Coordinate handling

3.1. Equipment is positioned and operated.

3.2. Handling activities are monitored to ensure they are carried out in an efficient and timely manner.

4. Finalise and review stock handling activities

4.1. Clean up of work areas, including checking, repairing and storage of equipment, is supervised.

4.2. Relevant stock handling data, observations or information are recorded legibly and accurately, and any out of range or unusual records checked.

4.3. Non-compliances are conveyed to senior personnel.

4.4. Options for improving efficiency through mechanisation or automation of process or activity, and use of specialised contract staff are researched and presented to senior personnel as potential improvements.

4.5. Staff are given feedback on their work performance.

Required Skills

Required skills

communicating with senior personnel on handling specifications, labour and resource requirements

coordinating work activities and staff

handling activities undertaken with stock

identifying potential improvements

operating, maintaining and repairing handling equipment

organising staff carrying out stock handling tasks

planning guidelines for stock handling

providing feedback to staff on performance, and on operations to senior personnel

researching options for improvements

recognising normal and abnormal stock behaviour and changing environmental conditions.

Literacy skills used for:

interpreting handling schedules

recording handling information

researching mechanisation or automation options.

Numeracy skills used for:

counting stock

completing stock handling data sheets

interpreting ratios, metric units and percentages.

Required knowledge

advanced stock behaviour and biological requirements of cultured or held stock

equipment calibration and operating methods

equipment maintenance and repairs

categories or types of cultured or held stock

operation and maintenance of automatic or mechanised equipment

safety considerations and hazards associated with handling live stock

safety considerations and hazards associated with stock handling equipment options and limitations.

Evidence Required

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 evidence required to demonstrate competence in this unit

Assessment must confirm the ability to:

coordinate a range of stock handling activities, such as handling, cleaning, sampling, moving, grading and stocking culture structures, seeding of half pearls, and supervising employees performing these activities.

Assessment must confirm knowledge of:

advanced stock behaviour and biological requirements

safety considerations and hazards associated with stock handling equipment options and limitations.

Context of and specific resources for assessment

Assessment is to be conducted at the workplace or in a simulated work environment. It should cover the supervision range of handling activities routinely carried out on aquaculture farms in the region.

Resources may include:

culture structure and stock

enterprise data sheets or record books

equipment required for the handling activities being assessed

handling schedule

staff to coordinate.

Method of assessment

The following assessment methods are suggested:

demonstration

practical exercises

project work

role play

written or oral short-answer testing.

Guidance information for assessment

This unit may be assessed holistically with other units within a qualification.


Range Statement

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.

Stock handling activities may include:

anaesthesia

cleaning and washing

counting

moving, transporting and transferring

quality control, grading and sorting

sampling for health assessment of stock

seeding of half pearls in molluscs

stocking culture or holding structures

weighing and measuring.

Cultured or held stock may include:

adults, broodstock (ready to breed), seedstock or stockers, eggs and sperm, fertilised eggs, larvae, post-larvae, seed, spat, hatchlings, yearlings, juveniles, fry, fingerlings, yearlings, smolt, sporophytes, seedlings and tissue cultures

finfish, crustaceans, molluscs, aquatic reptiles, amphibians, polychaete and oligochaete worms, plankton, micro-algae, seaweed, aquatic plants, live rock, sponges and other aquatic invertebrates

for human consumption (seafood), stockers for other farms, stockers for conservation or recreational fishing, display or companion animals (ornamentals), and other products, including pearls, skins, shells, eggs, chemicals and pigments

wild caught, hatchery or nursery reared.

Seeding may include:

gluing or attachment of half pearls on the inside of the shell (mabe)

pearl oysters, freshwater mussels, abalone and conch.

Note: Does not include insertion of a nucleus into the gonadal or somatic tissue of the shellfish for round pearl production.

Relevant government regulations, licensing and other compliance requirements may include:

biodiversity and genetically modified organisms

biosecurity, translocation and quarantine

business or workplace operations, policies and practices

correct marketing names and labelling

environmental hazard identification, risk assessment and control

food safety/Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP), hygiene and temperature control along chain of custody, and Australian Quarantine Inspection Service (AQIS) Export Control (Fish) orders

health and welfare of aquatic animals

maritime operations, safety at sea and pollution control

OHS hazard identification, risk assessment and control.

OHS guidelines may include:

appropriate workplace provision of first aid kits and fire extinguishers

codes of practice, regulations and/or guidance notes which may apply in a jurisdiction or industry sector

enterprise-specific OHS procedures, policies or standards

hazard and risk assessment of workplace, maintenance activities and control measures

induction or training of staff, contractors and visitors in relevant OHS procedures and/or requirements to allow them to carry out their duties in a safe manner

OHS training register

safe lifting, carrying and handling techniques, including manual handling, and the handling and storage of hazardous substances

safe systems and procedures for outdoor work, including protection from solar radiation, fall protection, confined space entry and the protection of people in the workplace

systems and procedures for the safe maintenance of property, machinery and equipment, including hydraulics and exposed moving parts

the appropriate use, maintenance and storage of PPE.

Food safety and hygiene regulations and procedures may include:

Australian Shellfish Sanitation program

equipment design, use, cleaning and maintenance

exporting requirements, including AQIS Export Control (Fish) orders

HACCP, food safety program, and other risk minimisation and quality assurance systems

location, construction and servicing of seafood premises

people, product and place hygiene and sanitation requirements

Primary Products Standard and the Australian Seafood Standard (voluntary)

product labelling, tracing and recall

receipt, storage and transportation of food, including seafood and aquatic products

requirements set out in Australian and New Zealand Food Authority (ANZFA) Food Standards Code and state and territory food regulations

temperature and contamination control along chain of custody.

ESD principles may include:

applying animal welfare ethics and procedures

control of effluents, chemical residues, contaminants, wastes and pollution

improving energy efficiency

increasing use of renewable, recyclable and recoverable resources

minimising noise, dust, light or odour emissions

preventing live cultured or held organisms from escaping into environment

reducing emissions of greenhouse gases

reducing energy use

reducing use of non-renewable resources

undertaking environmental hazard identification, risk assessment and control.

PPE may include:

gloves, mitts or gauntlets and protective hand and arm covering

buoyancy vest or personal floatation device (PFD)

hard hat or protective head covering

hearing protection (e.g. ear plugs and ear muffs)

non-slip and waterproof boots (gumboots) or other safety footwear

personal locator beacon or Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB)

protective outdoor clothing for tropical conditions

safety harness

sun protection (e.g. sun hat, sunscreen and sunglasses)

uniforms, overalls or protective clothing (e.g. mesh and waterproof aprons)

waterproof clothing (e.g. wet weather gear and waders).

Labour requirements may include:

plant, equipment, vehicle or vessel operators

skilled handling workers and unskilled labourers

specialised equipment operators

transport operators.

Resource requirements may include:

handling equipment

holding and transport equipment

vessels, vehicles, trucks, trailers, cranes and load-shifting equipment.


Sectors

Unit sector

Aquaculture operations


Employability Skills

This unit contains employability skills.


Licensing Information

Refer to Unit Descriptor