Elements and Performance Criteria

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 17025-2005 General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories
AS/NZS 2243 Set:2006 Safety in laboratories set
AS/NZS 2982.1:1997 Laboratory design and construction - General requirements
AS/NZS ISO 14000 Set:2005 Environmental management standards set
AS/NZS ISO 9000 Set:2008 Quality management systems set
ISO/IEC Guide 98-3:2008 Uncertainty of measurement - Part 3 Guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement (GUM)
Eurachem/CITAC Guide CG4 Quantifying uncertainty in analytical measurement
Australian code of good manufacturing practice for medicinal products (GMP)
calibration and maintenance schedules
cleaning, hygiene and personal hygiene requirements
data quality procedures
enterprise procedures, SOPs and operating manuals
enterprise recording and reporting procedures
equipment startup, operation and shutdown procedures
Guide to physical containment levels and facility types
incident and accident/injury reports
material safety data sheets (MSDS)
material, production and product specifications
national measurement regulations and guidelines
principles of GLP
production and laboratory schedules
quality manuals, equipment and procedure manuals
quality system and continued improvement processes
safety requirements for equipment, materials or products
sampling procedures (labelling, preparation, storage, transport and disposal)
schematics, work flows and laboratory layouts
statutory and enterprise OHS requirements
stock records and inventory
test procedures (validated and authorised)
training program contents
waste minimisation, containment, processing and disposal procedures
Routine electrometric techniques
Routine electrometric techniques may include use of:
ion-selective electrodes
potentiometric titrations
conductometric titrations
amperometry
polarography
Tests
Tests may include:
control of starting materials, in-process materials and finished products
environmental monitoring
therapeutic drug analysis
determination of enzyme activity
routine determination of chemical analytes such as fluoride, nitrate, water hardness, lead, copper and quinine
troubleshooting enterprise processes
Sample preparation
Sample preparation may include:
identification of any hazards associated with samples and/or analytical chemicals
grinding, mulling, digestion, dissolving, ashing, refluxing, extraction, filtration, evaporation, flocculation, precipitation, washing, drying and centrifugation
determination of and, if appropriate, removal of any contaminants or impurities
Common analytical procedure and equipment problems
Common analytical procedure and equipment problems may include:
matrix interferences such as formation of complexes
physical damage to electrodes
Hazards
Hazards may include:
electric shock
biohazards, such as microbiological organisms and agents associated with soil, air, water, blood and blood products, and human or animal tissue and fluids
chemicals:
acids (e.g. sulphuric, perchloric and hydrofluoric)
heavy metals and pesticides
anions (e.g. fluoride)
hydrocarbons (e.g. phenol, toluene, benzene and mono-aromatics)
ammonium persulphide
sharps and broken glassware
aerosols from broken centrifuge tubes and pipetting
flammable liquids and gases
cryogenics such as dry ice and liquid nitrogen
sources of ignition
disturbance or interruption of services
Addressing hazards
Addressing hazards may involve:
use of MSDS
labelling of samples, reagents, aliquoted samples and hazardous materials
use of personal protective equipment, such as gloves, safety glasses and coveralls
use of fumehoods and direct extraction of vapours and gases
use of appropriate equipment such as biohazard containers, laminar flow cabinets, Class I, II and III biohazard cabinets
handling and storage of all hazardous materials and equipment in accordance with labelling, MSDS and manufacturer's instructions
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

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:
interpret client requests, test methods and procedures accurately
safely set up and shut down equipment using enterprise procedures
check calibration/qualification status of equipment
prepare standards and samples appropriately
choose and optimise procedures and equipment settings to suit sample/test requirements
operate equipment to obtain valid and reliable data
make approved adjustments to procedures for non-routine samples
recognise atypical data/results
troubleshoot common analytical procedure and equipment problems
apply theoretical knowledge to interpret data and make relevant conclusions
record and report data/results in accordance with enterprise procedures
maintain security, integrity and traceability of samples and documentation
follow OHS procedures and principles of GLP.

Context of and specific resources for assessment
This unit of competency is to be assessed in the workplace or simulated workplace environment.
This unit of competency may be assessed with:
MSL925001A Analyse data and report results.
Resources may include:
standard laboratory equipped with routine electrometric equipment, laboratory reagents and equipment
SOPs and test methods.

Method of assessment
The following assessment methods are suggested:
review of test data/results obtained by the candidate over time to ensure accuracy, consistency and timeliness of results
inspection of test records and workplace documentation completed by the candidate
feedback from peers and supervisors
observation of candidate applying a range of routine electrometric techniques
oral or written questioning of chemical principles and concepts, electrometric techniques and enterprise 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.
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 studies below to illustrate the practical application of this unit of competency and to show its relevance in a workplace setting.
Manufacturing
Quality control tests on toothpaste require the monitoring of the soluble fluoride in the product. To analyse a sample, the technician uses an ultrasonic bath to disperse the paste in a buffer which controls ionic strength and pH (known as TISAB). He/she then measures the fluoride content using a fluoride ion-selective electrode which has been calibrated against a range of fluoride in TISAB standards.
Environmental
A technician routinely analyses effluent samples from a copper smelter for their lead and zinc content using differential pulse polarography. The samples require no pre-treatment other than the addition of solid KCl as electrolyte. The technician programmes the polarograph to analyse multiple samples on a carousel and to perform standard additions automatically by drawing aliquots from a concentrated standard of the two metals.
Food processing
One of the important quality tests for a wine is its total acidity (principally tartaric acid). Because of the colour of red wine, it is not possible to perform a titration using an indicator for endpoint detection. The technician is required to calibrate a pH electrode and titrate aliquots of the wine to a pH of 8.4 with standardised NaOH. The endpoint pH is the generally accepted one for wines of all types.