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Evidence Guide: MSL973012A - Assist with geotechnical site investigations

Student: __________________________________________________

Signature: _________________________________________________

Tips for gathering evidence to demonstrate your skills

The important thing to remember when gathering evidence is that the more evidence the better - that is, the more evidence you gather to demonstrate your skills, the more confident an assessor can be that you have learned the skills not just at one point in time, but are continuing to apply and develop those skills (as opposed to just learning for the test!). Furthermore, one piece of evidence that you collect will not usualy demonstrate all the required criteria for a unit of competency, whereas multiple overlapping pieces of evidence will usually do the trick!

From the Wiki University

 

MSL973012A - Assist with geotechnical site investigations

What evidence can you provide to prove your understanding of each of the following citeria?

Prepare for on-site operations

  1. Confirm details of the job, location, work instructions, appropriate sampling/test procedures and safety requirements with supervisor
  2. Identify likely site hazards, personal protective equipment and safety procedures that are specified for the job and materials used
  3. Collect, check, and stow all tools, equipment and materials required at the site
  4. Confirm site access requirements such as entry permits and participate in safety induction as required
Confirm details of the job, location, work instructions, appropriate sampling/test procedures and safety requirements with supervisor

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Identify likely site hazards, personal protective equipment and safety procedures that are specified for the job and materials used

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Collect, check, and stow all tools, equipment and materials required at the site

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Confirm site access requirements such as entry permits and participate in safety induction as required

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Assist with excavation of boreholes, test pits and/or trenches

  1. Confirm specified sampling/testing locations with supervisor
  2. Excavate to the specified sampling/testing depth, minimising disturbance and potential contamination of the site
  3. Ensure materials from different strata are kept separate
  4. Recognise materials and record changes of strata, test results
Confirm specified sampling/testing locations with supervisor

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Excavate to the specified sampling/testing depth, minimising disturbance and potential contamination of the site

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ensure materials from different strata are kept separate

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recognise materials and record changes of strata, test results

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Assist with site sampling

  1. Prepare and check sampling equipment and materials
  2. Take disturbed and undisturbed samples as directed and in accordance with enterprise methods/procedures
  3. Label samples and record samples/site conditions in accordance with enterprise methods/procedures
Prepare and check sampling equipment and materials

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Take disturbed and undisturbed samples as directed and in accordance with enterprise methods/procedures

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Label samples and record samples/site conditions in accordance with enterprise methods/procedures

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Assist with site testing

  1. Conduct pre-use checks of test equipment
  2. Perform basic tests as directed and in accordance with test methods or enterprise procedures
  3. Record data in accordance with test methods or enterprise procedures
  4. Recognise obvious errors or atypical data and seek advice
Conduct pre-use checks of test equipment

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Perform basic tests as directed and in accordance with test methods or enterprise procedures

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Record data in accordance with test methods or enterprise procedures

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recognise obvious errors or atypical data and seek advice

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Assist with finalising site operations

  1. Reinstate the site in accordance with instructions
  2. Clean all equipment (and vehicle as necessary) avoiding environmental damage, stormwater contamination or spread of pests
  3. Check all equipment/materials prior to re-stowing them for safe transport
  4. Handle and transport samples in accordance with enterprise procedures
  5. Notify appropriate site personnel on completion of tasks and prior to leaving site (if unsupervised)
  6. On return to base, check serviceability of test equipment before storage
Reinstate the site in accordance with instructions

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Clean all equipment (and vehicle as necessary) avoiding environmental damage, stormwater contamination or spread of pests

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Check all equipment/materials prior to re-stowing them for safe transport

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Handle and transport samples in accordance with enterprise procedures

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Notify appropriate site personnel on completion of tasks and prior to leaving site (if unsupervised)

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On return to base, check serviceability of test equipment before storage

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Assist with maintaining records

  1. Complete relevant parts of site safety plans, equipment logs and test reports in accordance with enterprise procedures
  2. Maintain confidentiality of enterprise information
Complete relevant parts of site safety plans, equipment logs and test reports in accordance with enterprise procedures

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maintain confidentiality of enterprise information

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maintain a safe work environment

  1. Use safe work procedures and protective equipment to ensure personal safety and that of others
  2. Minimise environmental impacts of testing/sampling and generation of waste
  3. Collect and/or dispose of all waste in accordance with enterprise procedures
Use safe work procedures and protective equipment to ensure personal safety and that of others

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Minimise environmental impacts of testing/sampling and generation of waste

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Collect and/or dispose of all waste in accordance with enterprise procedures

Completed
Date:

Teacher:		 Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Assessed

Teacher: ___________________________________ Date: _________

Signature: ________________________________________________

Comments:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Instructions to Assessors

Evidence Guide

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:

prepare for site operations and perform geotechnical sampling, testing and site reinstatement under direction

work safely at geotechnical investigation sites

follow instructions and work as part of a small team.

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:

MSL952002A Handle and transport samples or equipment

MSL952001A Collectroutine site samples

MSL973001A Perform basic tests.

Resources may include:

access to geotechnical sites, tools, 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

A geotechnical consultancy company is carrying out the investigation for the construction of an industrial complex involving building pads and roadways. A contract drilling company has been hired to carry out auger drilling for the building pad foundations. The drill rig will be used to perform standard penetration tests in some boreholes to determine bearing capacities. Undisturbed sample tubes will be pushed to obtain samples for consolidation testing in the laboratory.

A senior technician is in charge of site activities and arranges for the drill rig to be on-site. She/he plans a program of drilling, sampling and testing and a laboratory assistant is assigned to assist with drilling, testing and sampling operations at the site. The senior technician has a marked-up plan of the site showing borehole locations to help him/her direct where to drill.

The drilling contractor operates the drill rig, takes tube samples, performs the standard penetration tests and cases the hole if required, as directed by the senior technician. The assistant assists with recording and sampling the soil profile, sealing the sample tubes with wax and labeling them. He/she also records the SPT readings and bags and labels the material from the split-spoon sampler. Each borehole is capped to prevent access by unauthorised persons so that the assistant can record the standing water level 24 hours after the hole has been drilled. The assistant wears a helmet, work boots and earmuffs while working near the rig. He/she covers up and wears sunscreen while working in the sun and drinks large quantities of water.

The assistant also excavates hand auger holes to a depth of 1 m at regular intervals in the proposed roadways to obtain samples for California Bearing Ratio (CBR) tests. Adjacent to each, he/she performs a dynamic cone penetrometer test to 2 m to assess the insitu material. He/she records the logs of the auger holes and the test results on the company's standard data sheets and backfills each auger hole immediately after sampling.

Required Skills and Knowledge

Required skills

Required skills include:

interpreting maps, site plans and drawings

recognising site services, sampling and testing sites

setting up, checking, using and cleaning/maintaining tools and equipment

taking representative samples, handling and transporting samples

recognising soil, rock and fill materials

recognising site features and geotechnical conditions

performing basic insitu tests and site measurements (e.g. location and depth)

maintaining accurate and compete records

communicating problems to appropriate personnel

driving safely on and off-road

working safely on construction sites around heavy equipment and earthmoving plant

Required knowledge

Required knowledge includes:

the basic concepts, purposes and principles of geotechnical site investigation

site safety and management rules (safety induction, risk assessments, controlledentry/exit to site and required protective equipment and clothing)

simple methods for identifying and classifying materials

basic engineering properties of soil and rock materials and their use in engineering and construction

basic principles of representative sampling and testing

basic insitu testing methods

relevant occupational health, safety (OHS) and environment requirements

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.

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

material, production and product specifications

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

OHS national standards and codes of practice

production and laboratory schedules

quality manuals

standard operating procedures (SOPs)

Site hazards

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

underground services such as gas and electricity

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 and safety boots

handling and storage of (hazardous) materials and equipment in accordance with labels, MSDS, manufacturer's instructions, and 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:

hand tools, including shovels, crowbars, scoops, spanners, wrenches and tape measure

consumables, including sample bags, labels, sample tubes and wax

documentation, including maps, plans and worksheets

field test equipment, including dynamic cone penetration (DCP) testing, standard penetration testing (SPT), shear vane, pocket penetrometers and water level indicator

safety clothing and equipment, including helmets, boots, gloves, earmuffs and glasses

excavation equipment, including hand and power augers, powered excavators, generators and jack hammers

Common site problems

Common site problems may include:

caving in of excavation walls

drilling difficulties

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 impacts of construction activities on wildlife, vegetation, waterways and inclement weather

working close to earth moving equipment, trucks and overhead loads

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