No: DEE ESWB- 10-1-5

Authorised By: Manager ESWB

Title: Plant and Equipment Management Procedure
Issue Date: April 2011 Page Number: 1 of 7
Last Reviewed: April 2013 CENTRAL OFFICE USE ONLY
Next Review Date: April 2015

1. Purpose:
The purpose of this procedure is to ensure that risks associated with plant and equipment within the
Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) are identified and managed.

2. Scope:
This procedure applies to all plant and equipment which are used in DEECD workplaces including
schools and central and regional offices.

3. References

Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004

Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2007

School Policy and Advisory Guide - Curriculum

4. Definitions:
‘Danger – Do not A signed and dated label that is attached to energy isolation points of
operate’ Tag equipment, plant, pipes or lines by the person responsible for undertaking
repairs, maintenance, service alteration or cleaning, to indicate isolation is in
place and that plant, equipment, etc. must not be operated. It must only be
removed by the person whose name is on the tag.

Deputy Health An elected employee responsible for representing employees within a

and Safety Designated Work Group (DWG) on matters relating to Occupational Health
Representative: and Safety(OHS) in the absence of the Health and Safety Representative
(HSR).

Hazard: Anything with the potential to cause harm, injury, illness or loss.

Health and An elected employee responsible for representing employees within a DWG
Safety on matters relating to OHS.
Representative
(HSR):

Management A position nominated by the Workplace Manager to oversee the operational

OHS Nominee: aspects of implementing health, safety and wellbeing initiatives, policies and
procedures.

‘Out of Service’ A signed and dated label that is placed on a machine or piece of equipment
Tag to identify the equipment as being inoperable or requiring maintenance or
repair.

Plant and All machinery, tools, appliances and equipment. Plant and equipment cover
equipment: a diverse range of items from office equipment to industrial machinery.
Examples of plant and equipment include tractors, lifts, amusement
structures, forklifts, printing presses, hand tools, ladders and computers.

THIS DOCUMENT IS UNCONTROLLED WHEN PRINTED

 No: DEE ESWB- 10-1-5
Authorised By: Manager ESWB
Title: Plant and Equipment Management Procedure
Issue Date: April 2011 Page Number: 2 of 7
Last Reviewed: April 2013 CENTRAL OFFICE USE ONLY
Next Review Date: April 2015

Regulated Plant: 1. Plant that processes material by way of a mechanical action that:
a) Cuts, drills, punches or grinds the material; or
b) Presses, forms, hammers, joins or moulds the material; or
c) Combines, mixes, sorts, packages, assembles, knits or
weaves the material.
2. Plant that lifts or moves people or materials (other than a ship, boat,
aircraft) or a vehicle designed to be used primarily as a means of
transport on public roads or rail, if that vehicle is being used in a
workplace other than a public road or rail;
3. Pressure equipment;
4. Tractors;
5. Earthmoving machinery;
6. Lasers;
7. Scaffolds;
8. Temporary access equipment;
9. Explosive-powered tools;
10. Turbines; and
11. Amusement structures.

Risk: A description of the likelihood and consequence of a hazard causing injury

or illness.

Workplace The Manager or Principal responsible for the school, central office, regional
Manager: office or other DEECD workplace.

5. Responsibility:
Workplace Managers and/or Management OHS Nominees are responsible for:

identifying and recording all plant and equipment within the workplace on a Plant and Equipment
Register, which is regularly reviewed;

consulting with employees in relation to identifying and managing plant and equipment hazards;

ensuring that identified plant and equipment hazards are entered on to a Plant and Equipment Risk
Management Form;

ensuring that identified plant and equipment hazards are entered on to the OHS Risk Register, the
risks reviewed and appropriate controls implemented;

checking that Safe Work Procedures (SWP) are readily accessible for each item of plant and
equipment;

ensuring maintenance and repairs to plant and equipment is recorded on the Plant and Equipment
Maintenance Form;

complying with legislation relating to plant and equipment.

HSR functions can include:

reporting plant and equipment hazards;

assisting in the completion of the Plant and Equipment Risk Management Form as requested;

participating in the identification and implementation of risk controls;

reporting on the use and effectiveness of plant and equipment risk control measures.
Employees are responsible for:

THIS DOCUMENT IS UNCONTROLLED WHEN PRINTED

 No: DEE ESWB- 10-1-5
Authorised By: Manager ESWB
Title: Plant and Equipment Management Procedure
Issue Date: April 2011 Page Number: 3 of 7
Last Reviewed: April 2013 CENTRAL OFFICE USE ONLY
Next Review Date: April 2015

reporting plant and equipment hazards;

assisting Workplace Managers and/or Management OHS Nominees with completion of the Plant
and Equipment Risk Management Form;

participating in the identification and implementation of risk controls;

complying with SWP for plant and equipment.

6. Procedure:
6.1 Identify Plant and Equipment
The Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee must identify all plant and equipment
within the workplace in consultation with the HSR and employees and record this information on the
Plant and Equipment Register. Examples of plant and equipment include:

All regulated plant

Ladders

Table saws

Powered hand tools

Lifts.

Hazard identification should take place:

when new plant and equipment is introduced into the workplace;

for all existing plant and equipment;

before any changes are made to the system of work for plant and equipment;

before the plant and equipment is used in a manner other than what it was designed for;

when new information regarding the safety of the plant and equipment becomes available.

6.2 Risk Assessment of Plant and Equipment

The Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee are to ensure that a risk
assessment is completed as per the requirements of the OHS Risk Management Procedure and
documented on the Plant and Equipment Risk Management Form. This should be completed for
each identified hazardous item of plant and equipment in consultation with:

HSR

Employees

Relevant standards, codes of practice or legislation.

When determining the level of risk of a hazard the Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS
Nominee should also consider:

the systems of work related to the use of the item of plant or equipment;

the layout and physical conditions of the workplace;

the range of methods by which the work can be completed;

the type of hazards involved with the method of use and item of plant or equipment proposed to be
used;

The competence of persons to undertake the work.
6.3 Purchase or acquisition of Plant
The Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee must ensure that prior to the
purchase or acquisition of plant and equipment, that an OHS Purchasing Checklist is completed in
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 No: DEE ESWB- 10-1-5
Authorised By: Manager ESWB
Title: Plant and Equipment Management Procedure
Issue Date: April 2011 Page Number: 4 of 7
Last Reviewed: April 2013 CENTRAL OFFICE USE ONLY
Next Review Date: April 2015

accordance with the OHS Purchasing Procedure. This should occur in consultation with:

HSR

Employees

6.4 Controlling Plant and Equipment Risks

6.4.1 Control Measures
The Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee in consultation with the HSR and
employees are to ensure suitable controls, as outlined in the OHS Risk Management Procedure are
selected and implemented where plant and equipment risks are identified. This is to be documented
on the Plant and Equipment Risk Management Form.

Examples of plant and equipment controls (from most to least effective) could include:

determining whether the task can be completed by an alternative method e.g. purchasing timber
pre-cut to the correct length;

installing and maintaining fixed guarding on machinery;

training employees in appropriate courses to obtain the required competencies;

developing SWP;

providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) such as ear and eye protection.

Where the controls include development of procedures for the safe operation and/or use of plant and
equipment, a Safe Work Procedure template should be completed and displayed adjacent to all
items of static plant and accessible to operators of portable plant.

Plant and equipment that is identified as being unsafe must be isolated and tagged as per the Isolation
and Tag Out Procedure.

6.4.2 Training and Education

The Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee are to ensure teachers are
competent to use plant and equipment in their facilities. Teachers are required to have the
necessary qualifications as outlined in the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT) Qualification for
Teacher Registration Qualification Policy to enable them to teach Materials Technology in schools.
This shall be supplemented by successful completion, every five years, of relevant modules of the
Safe Use of Machinery in Technology Teaching course. Further information on this course is
available from the DEECD OHS Advisory Service on 1300 074 715.

Training records are to be maintained by the Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS
Nominee as outlined in the OHS Induction and Training Procedure.

6.4.3 Maintenance
A record of inspections and maintenance must be kept for each item of plant and equipment. This
includes scheduled maintenance, breakdown maintenance and replacement of parts (e.g. blades
and belts) outside the scheduled maintenance program. Maintenance requirements should be
determined in accordance with the supplier or manufacturer recommendations. Details recorded for
plant and equipment should as a minimum include:

plant and equipment name;

location;

serial or identification number;

THIS DOCUMENT IS UNCONTROLLED WHEN PRINTED

 No: DEE ESWB- 10-1-5
Authorised By: Manager ESWB
Title: Plant and Equipment Management Procedure
Issue Date: April 2011 Page Number: 5 of 7
Last Reviewed: April 2013 CENTRAL OFFICE USE ONLY
Next Review Date: April 2015

description of work performed;

completion date of repairs/maintenance;

who the work was performed by.

If the workplace does not have an existing recording system, the Plant and Equipment Maintenance
Form may be used. When items of plant are being maintained or repaired they must be isolated
and tagged as per the Isolation and Tag Out Procedure.

The Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee should ensure that contractors
engaged to undertake maintenance are managed as per the Contractor Management Procedure.
The frequency of the maintenance program will depend on:

legislative requirements;

manufacturer recommendations and requirements;

results of the Plant and Equipment Risk Management Form;

plant and equipment breakdown/failure rates.

6.5 Reviewing Controls

The Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee are responsible for reviewing the
effectiveness of risk controls in consultation with the HSR and employees. The Workplace
Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee should review the completed Plant and Equipment
Risk Management Form, OHS Risk Register and any other relevant sources of information (e.g.
operating manual) to determine if the current controls are appropriate for individual items of plant
and equipment. Any changes to the risk controls must be documented on the relevant Plant and
Equipment Risk Management Form and the OHS Risk Register.

Plant and Equipment Risk Management Forms are to be reviewed and revised whenever there is
evidence to indicate that the controls may no longer be valid, for example:

when the system of work for plant and equipment changes;

if the plant and equipment is used in a manner other than what it was designed for;

when new information regarding the safety of the plant and equipment becomes available.

6.6 Licensing Requirements

WorkSafe Victoria requires the operator of certain items of plant and equipment to hold a relevant
license. Licensing requirements can be found in Schedule 3 of the Victorian Occupational Health
and Safety Regulations. The Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee should
ensure that all operators of plant and equipment required to be licensed are identified as per the
Induction and Training Procedure. A photocopy of the current licence must be collected by the
Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee and retained in the training records.
The licensing requirements for contractors are to be managed as per the Contractor Management
Procedure.

6.7 Plant Requiring Registration

WorkSafe Victoria requires certain items of plant and equipment to be registered. Examples of
plant which must be registered include:

air receivers

pressure vessels

boilers

tower cranes

THIS DOCUMENT IS UNCONTROLLED WHEN PRINTED

 No: DEE ESWB- 10-1-5
Authorised By: Manager ESWB
Title: Plant and Equipment Management Procedure
Issue Date: April 2011 Page Number: 6 of 7
Last Reviewed: April 2013 CENTRAL OFFICE USE ONLY
Next Review Date: April 2015

self-erecting tower controls

lifts

building maintenance units

amusement structures

concrete placing units.

The Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee should contact the DEECD OHS
Advisory Service on 1300 074 715 for further information.

6.8 OHS Risk Register

The Workplace Manager and/or Management OHS Nominee are to ensure that the OHS Risk
Register is kept up to date and is reviewed when plant and equipment hazards are identified,
assessed, controlled and reviewed. Communication of any changes to the hazards associated with
plant and equipment is to occur as per the Consultation and Communication Procedure.

7. Related Documentation:
Consultation and Communication Procedure
Contractor Management Procedure
Safe Use of Machinery in Technology Teaching
Electrical Equipment Procedure
Induction and Training Procedure
Isolation and Tag Out Procedure
OHS Risk Management Procedure
OHS Risk Register
Plant and Equipment Register
Plant and Equipment Risk Management Form
Plant and Equipment Maintenance Form
Safe Work Procedure
OHS Purchasing Procedure
OHS Purchasing Checklist

8. Version Control
Version Section Amendment Date Author
Amended Created

2 All Updated procedure to include the February WN

requirements of the Isolation and Tag 2010
Out Procedure
3 All Updated procedure to include the March 2010 BW
requirements of the Plant and
Equipment Maintenance Form
4 All Minor wording changes, removal of April 2011 EHU
reference to Safe Use Tests for
students as this sits with the curriculum
area and is not part of the OHSMS

THIS DOCUMENT IS UNCONTROLLED WHEN PRINTED

 No: DEE ESWB- 10-1-5
Authorised By: Manager ESWB
Title: Plant and Equipment Management Procedure
Issue Date: April 2011 Page Number: 7 of 7
Last Reviewed: April 2013 CENTRAL OFFICE USE ONLY
Next Review Date: April 2015

5 All Two yearly review as per OHSMS November ESWB

requirements. 2012
Change to definitions to include
regulated plant
Change to 6.3 to include purchasing or
acquisition of plant
Change to 6.4.2 Training and
Education to include requirements for
teaching.
Inclusion of 6.46.6 licencing
requirements

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