Elements and Performance Criteria

The range of variables relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that will affect performance.
Where reference is made to industry Codes of Practice, and/or Australian/international standards, it is expected the latest version will be used.
All operations must comply with relevant standards, appropriate procedures and/or enterprise requirements.

These procedures include or may have been prepared from
Australian and international standards, such as-
AS ISO/IEC 17025 General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories
ISO 5725-11, 6 Accuracy (trueness and precision) of measurement methods and results
ISO 9000-1 Quality management and quality assurance standards Part 1 Guidelines for selection and use
ISO 9004-1 Quality management and quality system elements - Part 1 Guidelines
ISO 9004-4 Quality management and quality system elements - Part 4 Guidelines for quality improvement
ISO 10012 Quality assurance requirements for measurement equipment
Guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement, issued by BIPM, IEC, IFCC, ISO, IUPAC, IUPAP, OIML
industry/sector specific guides, such as Eurachem/CITAC Guide on 'Quantifying Uncertainty in Analytical Measurement'
material safety data sheets (MSDSs)
enterprise recording and reporting procedures, standard operating procedures (SOPs)
quality manuals, equipment and operating/technical manuals
test methods and calibration procedures (validated and authorised)
test methods and calibration procedures published by: international, national or regional standards, reputable technical organisations, scientific texts or journals, equipment manufacturers
incident and accident/injury reports
schematics, workflows, laboratory layouts, production and laboratory schedules.

Non-standard calibrations involve detecting and dealing with non-conforming work associated with the testing and/or calibrating of equipment, such as
common test equipment, such as anemometers, balances, barometers, calipers, environmental chambers, hygrometers, manometers, masses, micrometers, pressure equipment, spectrophotometers, tape measures, rules, temperature (digital) indicating systems, thermometers, thermocouples, timing devices, vibration analysis equipment, weighing instruments
electrical reference standards, such as air-lines, analogue meters, attenuators, bridges-manual balance, capacitors, DC voltage references, digital instruments (calibrators, DMMs, electronic transfer standards), inductors, instrument and ratio transformers, instrument transformer test sets, potentiometers, resistors, RF power meters, RF thermistor mounts and thermal converters, shunts, time interval and frequency standards, transfer standards AC-DC, voltage dividers, volt ratio boxes, watt-hour references
working standards, instruments and testing equipment, such as EMC test equipment, field strength meters, flammability test equipment, gauges/test fingers/test pins, hipot testers, impact hammers, impulse testers, instrument calibrators, network analysers, signal generators, spectrum and harmonic analysers.

Hazards may include
electric shock
disturbance or interruption of services
manual handling of heavy equipment boxes
sources of electromagnetic radiation (lasers, RF generators/transmitters)
fluids under pressure
heat sources, such as ovens.

Safety procedures may include
use of personal protective equipment, such as hearing protection, gloves, safety glasses, coveralls
ensuring access to service shut off points
handling and storing hazardous materials and equipment in accordance with labels, MSDS, manufacturer's instructions, enterprise procedures and regulations
regular cleaning of equipment and work areas.

This unit of competency may involve communication with
supervisors and managers (laboratory, quality and customer service)
peers and other laboratory or relevant technical personnel
clients and end users of equipment
external auditors, or accreditation agency (for example, NATA)
equipment manufacturers and suppliers of spare parts.

The working environment will have a controlled environment but could be a
purpose built designed facility
mobile facility in the field.

Health, safety and environment
All operations to which this unit applies are subject to stringent health, safety and environmental (HSE) requirements, which may be imposed through State or Federal legislation, and these must not be compromised at any time. Where there is an apparent conflict between performance criteria and HSE requirements, the HSE requirements take precedence.
All operations assume the potentially hazardous nature of samples and require standard precautions to be applied. Users should access and apply current industry understanding of infection control issued by the National Health and Medical Research Council and State and Territory Departments of Health. All operations are performed in accordance with standard operating procedures.

The Evidence Guide describes the underpinning knowledge and skills that must be demonstrated to prove competence.
Critical aspects of competency

Competency must be demonstrated in the ability to perform consistently at the required standard. In particular, assessors should look to see that the candidate:

identifies non-conforming calibration tasks and requests and assesses their significance
researches current, alternative calibration methods and equipment for a given request
quantifies the potential or actual impact of a wide range of test/environmental/equipment influences on data quality
explains complex calibration procedures to clients, clarifies requirements and deviations
maintains very close attention to procedures, accuracy and precision of measurement to ensure integrity of test/calibration results
critically examines each calibration step to ensure repeatability and validity of data
prepares test/calibration documentation that is accurate and complies with requirements
operates a wide range of equipment correctly and safely
applies all relevant enterprise procedures to ensure the quality and integrity of the services or data they provide
recognises opportunities for improvements to procedures.

Underpinning knowledge

Competency includes the ability to apply and explain:

requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories (for example, AS ISO/IEC 17025) as they affect job role and responsibilities
limits of authority and procedures for changing or deviating from standard calibration methods and procedures
structure and terminology used in standard calibration methods, procedures, requests and instructions
current calibration methods, procedures and technology applications used in the laboratory
implications of changing or deviating from standard calibration procedures
equipment specifications and limitations and the implications of equipment substitution
hierarchy and appropriate selection of reference materials
handling, transport, storage and operation of reference and working standards
laboratory environmental control requirements
calculation procedures to give results in appropriate accuracy, precision and units
equipment and testing method troubleshooting procedures
methods for statistical analysis (means, ranges, standard deviations) and estimation of uncertainty of measurement (may include the use of soft ware)
reporting procedures and legislative requirements
enterprise and/or legal traceability requirements
relevant health, safety and environmental requirements.

Knowledge is also required of the:

layout of the enterprise, divisions and laboratory
organisational structure of the enterprise
lines of communication
role of laboratory services to the enterprise and customers.

Specific industry

Additional knowledge requirements may apply for different industry sectors. For example, testing conducted in the following fields:

acoustic and vibration measurement
chemical testing
construction materials testing
electrical testing
heat and temperature measurement
mechanical testing
metrology
non-destructive testing
optics and radiometry
pressure testing.

Assessment context and methods
This unit of competency is to be assessed in the workplace or simulated workplace environment.

The following assessment methods are suggested:

review of calibration results, uncertainty calculations and documentation completed by the candidate
feedback from supervisors and/or customers regarding quality of calibration services provided by the candidate
observation of the candidate conducting non-standard calibrations
oral or written questioning to check underpinning knowledge of non-standard calibration procedures.
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. Questioning techniques should suit the language and literacy levels of the candidate.

Interdependent assessment of unit

This unit of competency may be assessed with:

PMLDATA500B Analyse data and report results.

Resource implications

Resources may include:

specialised calibration/test equipment, reference standards and materials, laboratory facilities
access to a library of calibration methods, procedures, equipment specifications
enterprise quality manual and procedures.

This competency in practice
Calibration technicians/specialists have the skills and knowledge to operate, maintain and calibrate a wide variety of complex test equipment and measuring instruments with limited guidance. They must remain abreast of technical and equipment advances, interpret complex technical information accurately and liaise with clients to clarify their needs. They must demonstrate high levels of initiative and concentration when performing technically demanding measurements, providing solutions for non-conforming work and when adjusting or repairing complex instruments. The calibration specialist's workload can be routine and repetitive. A perpetual back-log of work and the constant need to reduce turn-around-time to meet client demands coupled with enterprise productivity goals can induce stress and mental fatigue if not carefully managed. However, it is essential that personnel are able to perform tests and associated work tasks without undue pressure that might influence technical judgement if 'integrity of measurement' is to be retained.
A client has delivered a new model vibration transducer to the laboratory and would like a full test report on the item. A calibration technician assesses the job. They conclude that because the item is new to the industry, the laboratory will probably not have a documented calibration procedure. A quick ring around the company's other laboratories confirms that a procedure has not been written yet. They analyse the item's technical specifications and realise that although a generic procedure will suffice for most of the tests, it will have to be modified.
The technician reports these concerns to the supervisor who confirms that the client wants to know if the item meets the manufacturer's specifications. Approval is given to the technician to modify a previous procedure. The revised procedure is shown to the supervisor who checks each step and confirms the test is technically justified and all uncertainties have been calculated and documented.
The technician sets up the reference standards, confirms they are fully operational and within specification and begin the test. Each stage of the test is carefully monitored to ensure the data is correct and valid. On completion, another technician conducts the test and the data is compared. The supervisor is confident the test and data are valid and a report is generated, including a method validation summary for the laboratory's records.
A calibration technician is scheduled to calibrate a client's signal generator in accordance with the manufacturer's procedure. The technician reads the procedure and assembles all the required reference standards but notices the laboratory's reference frequency counter is not available because it has been sent away for calibration. The technician needs to substitute another instrument and so scans the other workbenches. They decide on a particular model and refers to the instrument's technical specifications to confirm that it has all the required ranges and is accurate enough. Convinced this item will do the job, the technician seeks and gains approval from the supervisor. There is no need to consult with the customer because the substitution will have no negative influence on the results. The technician completes the calibration in accordance with the procedure. In the final report, they document the details of the replacement equipment used in the test to ensure the repeatability of measurements and to comply with statutory regulations.

The seven key competencies represent generic skills considered for effective work participation. The bracketed numbering against each of the key competencies indicates the performance level required in this unit. These are stand-alone levels and do not correspond to levels in the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF).
Level (1) represents the competence to undertake tasks effectively
Level (2) represents the competence to manage tasks
Level (3) represents the competence to use concepts for evaluating and reshaping tasks.
Communicating ideas and information
(2)

Collecting analysing and organising information
(3)

Planning and organising activities
(2)

Working with others and in teams
(2)

Using mathematical ideas and techniques
(3)

Solving problems
(3)

Using technology
(3)