NEBOSH Award in Health, Safety and Environment

for the Process Industries

NEBOSH Award for the Process Industries
The NEBOSH Award in Health, Safety and Environment for the Process Industries is ideal for
those working or wanting to work, in industries like oil and gas, chemicals, pharmaceuticals,
petrochemicals or food. It introduces a broad range of topics, including common safety and
environmental issues associated with process safety. This introductory qualification is aimed at
anyone who needs to understand the principles of health and safety as part of their job within the
process industries including:

• Process operators
• Technicians
• Team leaders and supervisors
• Others with a need to understand health, safety and the environment in the process industries
Course Content
The NEBOSH Award in Health and Safety at Work is made
up of two units:
Unit HSW1: Workplace Safety Foundations
• The Foundations of Health and Safety
• The Responsibility for Health and Safety
• Health and Safety Risk Assessment and Control
• Hazards and Controls Associated with Work
Equipment
• Transport Safety
• Hazards and Controls Associated with Working with
Electricity
• Fire Safety
• Hazards and Control Associated with Manual
Handling and Repetitive Movement
• Hazards and Controls Associated with Hazardous
Substances
• Hazards and Controls Associated with the Working
Environment
Assessed by a 2 hour examination.
Unit PS1: Process Safety
• The Foundations of Process Safety
• Systems to Prevent Loss of Containment
• Common Hazards, Risks and Controls in the Chemical
Industry
• Plant Integrity
• Emergency Response
Unit PS2: Environmental Management
• Foundations in Environmental Management
• Control of Emissions
• Environmental Risk Assessments (Impact
Assessment)
Assessed by a 1.5 hour multiple-choice exam
“I found the website, literature, customer support,
exam organisation, etc all very good and I would
recommend you for other training courses.
The course content was excellent, a really good
grounding in HS&E for the Chemical Industry.
Lots of links to further information.
I would recommend it to any one without a formal HSE
Qualification (from Process Engineer or Mechanical
Engineer to Site Manager) and who is motivated to
self-learn in this subject area.”
Aled Hopkins
NEBOSH Award For The Process Industries e-Learning
Course, June 2014

Email: info@rrc.co.uk Web: www.rrc.co.uk Tel: +44 (0)20 8944 3100

 NEBOSH Award in Health, Safety and Environment
for the Process Industries
Ways to study:
e-Learning
Available Worldwide
Around 45 study hours + assessment
Fit your studies around your other commitments by
studying online. Our online courses are fully interactive
with videos, quizzes and practice questions, and you will
receive unlimited tutor support throughout your course.
Exams can be sat at our RRC centres in London, Birmingham, Manchester,
Newcastle, Glasgow, Bahrain, Dubai, Tunis or Tbilisi or one of our 190+
Exam Venues Worldwide.
Why RRC?
• Over 85 years experience
• Chosen by over 1 million students as
their preferred training provider
• Our expert trainers and friendly
support team inspire total confidence
all who we train and advise
• Quality Training from experts
• Excellence in Customer Service
• Commitment to Quality
• Great Results

Sample Material
Our high-quality textbooks have been designed to support students throughout their studies, as well as providing a
useful guide for practitioners and those with HSE responsibilities at work. These full-colour, fully illustrated books
are aligned to the relevant awarding-body syllabus for each qualification, breaking down all the key topics so they
are easy to understand.

The materials are designed with:

• Key Information boxes, which present an overview of the important facts, ideas and principles of each
section
• Glossary boxes, giving descriptions or definitions of words or phrases that may be unfamiliar
• More... boxes containing sources of further information
• Hints and Tips boxes, containing simple ideas that can help you as you work through the book
• Revision Questions at the end of each main section to test your knowledge as you progress
• Practice exam-style questions with step-by-step guidance on how to answer them

Following is a sample of RRC Study Material for:

NEBOSH Award in Health, Safety and Environment for the Process Industries
Unit PS1 Element 1

Email: info@rrc.co.uk Web: www.rrc.co.uk Tel: +44 (0)20 8944 3100

 Legal Requirements

AL
KEY INFORMATION
• The Seveso II directive has been developed to control major accidents in the European Union.
• The COMAH Regulations (Control of Major Accident Hazards Regulations 1999) cover the prevention of
major accidents in the process and other high hazard industries in Great Britain (note – these laws do not cover

RI
Northern Ireland). They apply to organisations storing specific quantities of dangerous substances on their site.
• All construction projects are subject to the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007. These
Regulations have many requirements, including the preparation of a ‘Construction Phase Plan’ and a ‘Health and
Safety File’.

TE
IMPORTANCE OF HEALTH AND SAFETY The Seveso II directive has been mainly implemented in
REGULATORY FRAMEWORKS FOR MAJOR the UK under the Control of Major Accident Hazards
Regulations 1999, commonly known as the COMAH
HAZARD INDUSTRIES Regulations.

MA
Importance of International/National
Standards for Major Hazard Industries TOPIC FOCUS
One of the key health and safety laws for process The COMAH Regulations
industries located within the European Union is the Seveso
II directive (officially known as the Directive 96/82/EC on These Regulations apply to premises which:
the control of major accident hazards). The main precursor • Keep listed dangerous substances in quantities
for the original Seveso Directive was an accident at a exceeding stated thresholds.
chemical plant that manufactured pesticides and herbicides • Use substances which are flammable, explosive,
LE
in Seveso Italy 1976. The accident resulted in the release of toxic or dangerous to the environment.
a dense cloud of a poisonous and cancer causing substance
COMAH differentiates between those sites deemed
(a dioxin) into the air which although caused no fatalities
to be of higher risk (‘top tier’), due to the quantities
resulted in the treatment of 2000 people for dioxin
of dangerous substances stored or used, and lower
poisoning and the contamination of ten square miles of
risk sites (‘lower tier’).
land. The original directive was adopted in 1982 with the
MP

Seveso II directive being adopted in 1996. Operators of establishments covered by COMAH

must:
The Seveso II directive has a number of key requirements
aimed at controlling major accident hazards, these include: • Take all measures necessary to prevent or
mitigate the effects of major accidents to people
• The operator notifying a competent authority before
and the environment. Demonstration of the
starting activities.
presence of adequate safety measures is a key
• Development a major accident prevention policy. part of the process.
• Submission of a site safety report.
SA

• Prepare a Major Accident Prevention Policy

• Development of a safety management system.
• Controlling land use (e.g. location of new
establishments and nearby developments).
• Providing information to the public.
• Accident reporting.
C
RR
(MAPP), which should demonstrate that there is
an adequate safety management system in place.
• Send details of the types and quantities of
hazardous substances to the competent
authority.
• Send a Site Safety Report to the authority for
approval (‘top tier’ sites only).

© RRC International Unit PS1 – Element 1: The Foundations of Process Safety | 1-3
Legal Requirements

Guidance has also been prepared by the United Nations
Environment Programme that sets out a framework for
prevention and preparedness of chemical accidents.
MORE…
AL
• Contractors - who carry out specific types of work
under the direction of the Principal Contractor.
The Regulations require the preparation of a ‘Construction
Phase Plan’ and a ‘Health and Safety File’ for the finished
structure.

RI
The UNEP guidance document ‘a flexible framework GLOSSARY
for addressing chemical accident prevention and
preparedness’ can be found at: CONSTRUCTION PHASE PLAN
www.unep.fr/scp/sp/saferprod/pdf/UN_Flexible_ The health and safety management plan for the

TE
Framework_WEB_FINAL.pdf construction phase of the project.

HEALTH AND SAFETY FILE

GLOSSARY Contains information about the new or modified
structure that the client needs to know.
COMPETENT AUTHORITY

MA
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the
Environment Agency which jointly enforce the TOPIC FOCUS
COMAH Regulations.
CONSTRUCTION PHASE PLAN
The plan will be started by the CDM Co-ordinator
and then developed by the Principal Contractor.
MORE… Typical contents would include:
www.hse.gov.uk/comah/ • Site description:
LE
–– Including project description and existing site
plans.
CONSTRUCTION (DESIGN AND • Management of the work:
MANAGEMENT) REGULATIONS 2007 –– Management structure.
Construction projects in process industries usually involve –– Management arrangements, e.g. for site
many different parties in a collaborative effort. All parties
MP

induction and accident reporting.

have an important role to play in ensuring that: –– Site rules.
• The project is carried out safely. –– Fire and emergency procedures.
• The end result (the structure) is safe. • Arrangements for controlling significant site
All construction projects are subject to the Construction risks:
(Design and Management) Regulations 2007 (CDM –– Safety risks, e.g. fall prevention.
Regulations). These Regulations are split into various –– Health risks, e.g. removal of asbestos.
parts, some of which deal with the practical control of • The Health and Safety File:
SA

construction work. All parts of the Regulations apply to –– Arrangements for gathering and storing
notifiable projects. information.
Notifiable Projects
Requirements of the Regulations include notification of
projects to the HSE where construction activities last over
30 days or involve more than 500 person-days.
C

For such notifiable projects the CDM Regulations identify

five duty holders who have a part to play in ensuring safety:
• Client - for whom the project is being carried out.
RR

• Designers or architects - who specify the finished

structure.
• CDM Co-ordinator - who assists the client during the
planning and construction phases of the project.
• Principal Contractor - who manages the construction
phase of the project.

1-4 | Unit PS1 – Element 1: The Foundations of Process Safety © RRC International
 Legal Requirements

AL
TOPIC FOCUS
HEALTH AND SAFETY FILE
The CDM Co-ordinator is responsible for preparing
and updating the Health and Safety File.

RI
Typical content would include:
• Brief description of work.
• Residual hazards.
• Key structural principles.

TE
• Hazardous material used.
• Information relevant to dismantling.
• Information on cleaning or maintenance of
equipment.
• Services (electricity, gas, etc.).
• Information and as-built drawings regarding the

MA
structure and plant and equipment.
LE
MP
SA
C
RR

© RRC International Unit PS1 – Element 1: The Foundations of Process Safety | 1-5
Legal Requirements

AL
TOPIC FOCUS
The Regulations assign the following duties to each party:
• The Client should ensure that:
–– All other parties are competent.

RI
–– Adequate information is passed on to the other duty holders.
–– Work does not start until a Construction Phase Plan for the project exists.
–– Adequate arrangements are made to ensure health, safety and welfare during the construction phase.
–– Any structure intended for use as a workplace complies with the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare)

TE
Regulations 1992.
• The Designers should ensure that:
–– The Client is aware of his duties under the CDM Regulations.
–– A CDM Co-ordinator has been appointed for notifiable projects.
–– The design minimises health and safety risks to:
–– the construction workers;

MA
–– those who will occupy the structure on completion; and
–– those involved in cleaning and maintenance.
–– The design for a structure intended for use as a workplace complies with the Workplace (Health, Safety and
Welfare) Regulations 1992.
• The CDM Co-ordinator should ensure that:
–– The Client is advised on:
–– The adequacy of the arrangements put in place by other duty holders.
LE
–– The appointment of competent contractors and designers.
–– The HSE are notified of the project.
–– Proper co-operation and co-ordination takes place during the design and planning process.
–– The Health and Safety File is prepared and passed to the Client at the end of the project.
• The Principal Contractor should ensure that:
–– A Construction Phase Plan for the project exists.
MP

–– The construction phase of the project is carried out safely.

–– The site is secure.
–– All contractors are working to the site rules.
–– All contractors receive site-specific induction training.
• The Contractors should ensure that they:
–– Work to site rules.
–– Co-operate with the main contractor.
SA
C

REVISION QUESTIONS
1. Name two requirements of the COMAH
RR

Regulations.
MORE… 2. What are the duties of the CDM Co-ordinator?
http://www.hse.gov.uk/construction/cdm.htm (Suggested Answers are at the end.)

1-6 | Unit PS1 – Element 1: The Foundations of Process Safety © RRC International
 Human Factors

AL
KEY INFORMATION
• ‘Human Factors’ is defined as the interaction between the main factors (job, individual and organisation) that
affect human performance while at work.
• Human factors that influence work activities must be determined to gain an understanding of the reasons why

RI
people behave as they do while at work.
• Unintended actions (actions that were not intended to be carried out) include slips, lapses and mistakes.
• Actions that are intended include violations, e.g. a deliberate breach of procedures and rules.

TE
WHAT IS MEANT BY HUMAN FACTORS AND
ERGONOMICS

Human Factors

MA
GLOSSARY
HUMAN FACTORS
Defined by the HSE as the interaction between the
main factors that affect human performance while
at work. The main factors are classed as the job, the
individual and the organisation.
LE
TOPIC FOCUS
In an organisation that has a high level of management, human factors would constitute:
• The job - this is fitted to the strengths and weaknesses of the person/team that is carrying it out. This is fitting
the job to the human. Examples might include ensuring that machinery, control and display devices, tools, etc. are
MP

all designed correctly.

• The individual - the organisation should select individuals who are suitable for the needs of the job. This is
known as fitting the human to the job. They must have the correct skills, knowledge, experience and training.
• The organisation - responsibility for all work (including design) is taken by the organisation management. This
will include developing an effective safety management system, encouraging good safety culture by displaying
commitment and generally consulting with employees. A good organisation will also learn from accidents and
near misses and take into account the latest thinking on health and safety issues.
SA
C
RR

Factors Which Influence Behaviour

© RRC International Unit PS1 – Element 1: The Foundations of Process Safety | 1-7