Elements and Performance Criteria

Context
This unit of competency includes all such items of equipment and unit operations which form part of the evacuation procedure including:
totally enclosed motorised personnel survival craft (TEMPSC's)
launch and retrieval systems.

Typical problems for your installation may include:
a range of weather conditions
communication systems failures
malfunctioning equipment
unaccounted for personnel
launching difficulties.

HSE
All operations to which this unit applies are subject to stringent health, safety and environment 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.

Assessment context and methods
Assessment for this unit of competency will be in a simulated environment. The unit will be assessed in as holistic a manner as is practical and may be integrated with the assessment of other relevant units of competency. Assessment will occur over a range of situations which will include disruptions to normal and planned operation.

Simulation should be based on survival craft and launching systems relevant to the particular facility/installation and will include walk throughs of the relevant competency components. Simulations may also include the use of case studies/scenarios, role plays and 3D virtual reality interactive systems.

This unit of competency requires an application of the knowledge contained in the use of survival craft and their integral equipment, to the level needed to maintain control and recognise and resolve problems. This can be assessed through questioning and the use of what if scenarios both on the plant (during demonstration of normal operations and walk throughs of abnormal operations) and off the plant.

Critical aspects
Competence must be demonstrated in the ability to recognise and analyse potential situations requiring action and then in implementing appropriate corrective action. The emphasis should be on the ability to stay out of trouble rather than on recovery from a disaster.

Consistent performance should be demonstrated. In particular look to see that:
application of emergency response plans and procedures, evacuation procedures and alarms is in accordance with procedures
there is control and co-ordination of evacuation muster activities
safe and timely initiation of facility evacuation activities occurs
operation, including navigation and safe handling of emergency craft conforms to established emergency response.

These aspects may be best assessed using a range of scenarios/case studies/what ifs as the stimulus with a walk through forming part of the response. These assessment activities should include a range of problems, including new, unusual and improbable situations which may have been generated from the past incident history of the plant, incidents on similar plants around the world, hazard analysis activities and similar sources.

Resource implications
Assessment will require access to an operating TEMPSC which must be available and equipped for deployment. A bank of scenarios/case studies/what ifs will be required as will a bank of questions which will be used to probe the reasoning behind the observable actions.

Other assessment advice
In all facilities it may be appropriate to assess this unit concurrently with:
PMAOPS228 - Apply sea survival techniques.

Essential knowledge
The knowledge referred to in the evidence guide for this unit includes:
principles involved in the launching, handling and recovery of survival craft
factors needing to be taken into account during the operation of survival craft in all types of weather conditions
operation of all equipment normally contained within a survival craft.
emergency response plans and procedures
evacuation procedures and alarms
all items on a schematic of the facility or installation layout
safety equipment and survival craft locations (TEMPSC).
procedures for loss of command situations.

Competence also includes the ability to isolate the causes of problems to an item of equipment within the emergency evacuation system and to distinguish between causes of problems/alarm/fault indications such as:
communications equipment problems
location beacon malfunctions
listing or other floatation difficulties
mechanical failures.