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. Add any 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.
Codes of practice/ standards
Where reference is made to industry codes of practice, and/or Australian/international standards, the latest version must be used.
Context
This competency is performed by more experienced operators and may be performed individually or as part of a team. It includes the following indicative functions:
examining plant records
examining operating procedures and practices
liaising with a range of internal people
modifying/updating standard operating procedures to 'lock in' any changes.
Typical objectives will include:
minimisation of waste
maximisation of product yield from raw materials
reduction in volume of pollutants made
reduction in concentration/intensity of pollutants made
reduction in emissions.
All operations are performed in accordance with standard procedures and policies.
Health, safety and environment (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.

EVIDENCE GUIDE
The Evidence Guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the Performance Criteria, Required Skills and Knowledge, the Range Statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.

Overview of assessment
Assessment of this unit should include demonstrated competence on actual plant and equipment in a work 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, smooth operation.
Assessment of this unit may be best achieved with a suitable project. This will minimise possible impact on the environment caused by the process or some aspect of the process. Such a project may be regarded as adequate provided it meets all the Performance Criteria of at least one Element. It is not necessary to cover all elements.
This unit of competency requires a significant body of knowledge which will 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 for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit
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:
procedures are developed to reduce the consumption of resources, or to minimise pollution and/or waste products
appropriate documentation is completed to implement changes
the greatest yield is achieved by appropriate selection of type of resource usage, type of pollutant or waste product.
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.

Context of and specific resources for assessment
Assessment will require access to an operating plant over an extended period of time, or a suitable method of gathering evidence of operating ability over a range of situations. 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.

Method of assessment
In all plants it may be appropriate to assess this unit concurrently with relevant teamwork and communication units. Consider co-assessment with:
Competency units relevant to the type of process equipment.
In a major hazard facility, it may be appropriate to assess this unit concurrently with OHS units.

Guidance information for assessment
Assessment processes and techniques must be culturally appropriate and appropriate to the oracy, language and literacy capacity of the assessee and the work being performed.