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Guidelines Part 1
Guidelines Part 1 Contents
DEFINITIONS
Guidelines Part 1 - Definitions
Guideline G1.2 Professional engineer
Issued August 1, 1999; Editorial Revision October 14, 2004
An officer of the Board will treat as unacceptable any engineering certificate, approval or design that does not comply with the regulations or an order or direction of the Board, or a variance granted by the Board.
The situation may arise where there appears to be compliance with the regulations, or with a variance granted by the Board, but an officer feels the engineering is inadequate and could endanger a worker. In such cases, the officer will not reject the engineering certification, approval, or design without authorization from his or her manager, and upon the recommendation of an engineer from the Engineering Section.
The Engineering Section should be contacted for assistance in reviewing unclear, vague and generally unprofessional engineering documents left on job sites for the purpose of compliance with the regulations. The Engineering Section may initiate a formal complaint to the Association Of Professional Engineers And Geoscientists Of British Columbia (APEGBC). Each potential complaint will be assessed on an individual basis. Before a complaint is made, a member of the Section will review the letter and attachments for each complaint. The reviewer will be an engineer who has had no direct dealings with the person named in the complaint on the matter at issue. The reviewer will comment on the content, completeness and apparent reasonableness of the complaint.
As an engineer is generally working in and contributing to the production of an industry, an officer may write orders on the engineer, and his or her firm, if the documents provided are inadequate and/or do not meet the requirements of the OHS Regulation. See also OHS Guideline 20.78 regarding engineer's certificates for excavations.
Good engineering practice
The OHS Regulation uses the phrase "good engineering practice" in a number of places. The Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientist of BC publishes an extensive guide entitled "Guidelines for Professional Practice", which outlines the expectations of a professional engineer respecting their professional practice. The scope of this guide far exceeds what is necessary to clarify the intent of the phrase "good engineering practice" with respect to the Regulation.
The inspection, repair and certification of a structure, machine or piece of equipment, is the most common context where the phrase "good engineering practice" is used in the Regulation. In those contexts, the phrase means the work should be done
- in compliance with the requirements of the regulations and standard the equipment is required to meet,
- in compliance with the equipment manufacturer's recommendations for operation, maintenance and servicing, and
- considering the operating, maintenance and service records for the equipment.
In many cases, the inspection and certification will require assessment of "critical components", which may be structural and mechanical components as well as controls. Generally the "hands on" part of inspection and testing will be done by mechanics, service technicians and non-destructive testing (NDT) technicians, as appropriate. Legislation may stipulate qualifications or requirements for a person and/or facility for this work. However, the employer must ensure qualified people and adequate facilities are used for inspection, testing and repair. If the regulations require certification, the certifying agent should be consulted in advance by the employer regarding who and where inspection, testing and repair should be done.
The extent of dismantling and NDT inspection required for equipment will vary, depending on
- requirements specified in a section of the regulation or a code,
- the equipment manufacturer's recommendations,
- the general condition of the equipment, and
- the environment in which the equipment has been used.
The certifying agent must determine the extent of work necessary for each job requiring a certification. The following examples will help set the context for application of "good engineering practice".
- If the equipment has been used in a corrosive environment, the certifying agent will likely require more thorough checking than if the equipment has seen limited, light duty use in a clean, dry shop or yard area.
- If the owner has an excellent service and maintenance program for the equipment, and a working relationship with the certifying agent, the inspection process may take this into account. Conversely, if there is no working relationship between the owner and the certifying agent, if the equipment appears to be in poor shape, or if there is incomplete (or no) inspection and maintenance record (log book) for the equipment, the certifying agent will likely need to do more inspection and testing to determine its status.
The certifying agent will generally be a professional engineer. If the work is done in BC, the engineer, as required by the Engineers and Geoscientists Act, must be licensed to practice in BC. If the work is being done outside BC, for example in Alberta, the engineer must be licensed to practice in that area. If the certifying agent is a manufacturer's representative, the person signing the certification should be specifically authorized in writing by the manufacturer to make such a certification on behalf of the manufacturer.
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Disclaimer: The Worker and Employer Services Division issues Guidelines to help with the application and interpretation of sections of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation and with divisions of the Workers Compensation Act that relate to health and safety. Guidelines are not intended to provide exclusive interpretations but to assist with compliance. WorkSafeBC ("Workers' Compensation Board of B.C.") does not warrant the accuracy or the completeness of the online version of the Guidelines and neither WorkSafeBC nor its board of directors, employees or agents shall be liable to any persons for any loss or damage of any nature, whether arising out of negligence or otherwise, which may be occasioned as a result of the use of the online version of the Guidelines.