Branch Reports

Wessex and South Wales

A meeting of the Branch was held on 20th April, 1970 at the offices of Taunton R.D.C., Mary Street House, Taunton, Somerset.

Present

Mr. R. Crowther(Vice-Chairman)in the Chair and 26 members.

Apologies 18 apologies were received including that of the Chairman Mr. S. W. D. Harris.

Minutes

The minutes of the meeting held at Sherborne on 20th October, 1969 which had been circulated with the Agenda, were approved and signed.

Matters Arising out of the Minutes

The Secretary reported that he had received a letter of appreciation from Mr. D. J. Davies, M.B.E., and Mr. T. K. Blackwell, together with the Clerk of the Sherborne UDC.

Hon. Secretary/Treasurer's Report

The Secretary explained the fact that the Association had not confirmed the Branch Rules and Constitution as they were preparing new Standard Rules and Constitutions.

Since the notice of the meeting had been sent out he had consulted with the Chairman, and had found it possible to call a meeting of the Executive Committee for 7th April, 1970. At the suggestion of the Secretary it was agreed the of that meeting (which were thereupon circulated) be received and considered in conjunction with Items 6 and 7 of the Agenda.

The Treasurer reported Branch membership had increased from 46 to 59 for which 5/- capitation fee per member had been received, totalling £14 15s. .

Various enquiries and correspondence had been received and dealt with from Petroleum Officers, either for information or details of the Association's activities. He had attended meetings at Doncaster, Birmingham and Burton-upon-Trent but would be prevented from attending the Annual General Meeting at Leamington Spa by other commitments.

The financial position of the accounts showed that with the payment of the .;urrent year's capitation fee of £14 15s. the balance in the bank at 31st March, 1970 was £1617s. with out- standing accounts of £1 15s. Od. The services of Mr. D. Cole, Deputy Treasurer Thornbury RDC had been obtained and the accounts had been audited. Election of Officers

The view of Mr. S. W. D. Harris, present Chairman, that in the early formative years of the Branch, the Chairmanship should be changed annually, and the recommendations of the Executive Committee were adopted, namely-

Chairman

R. Crowther, Chief Inspector of Weights and Measures, Gloucester City.

Vice-Chairman

L. Haggett, Fire Service Officer, Merthyr Tydfil.

Secretary/Treasurer

R. Huntington, Public Health Inspector, Thornbury RDC.

Hon. Auditor

D. Cole, Deputy Treasurer, Thornbury RDC.

Branch Representative

S. W. D. Harris, Gloucester RDC.

Committee

T. L. Cox, Cricklade & Wootton Bassett RDC; T. K. Blackwell, Sherborne UDC; M. Clark, Cheltenham BC; A. B. Rowlands, Llanelli RDC; W. Jones, Newport CB; J. J. Storey, City of Bath.

Date and Venue of Next Meeting

After discussion it was unanimously Resolved that the next meeting be held on 12th October, 1970 at Newport, Mon. Mr. C. J. Jones agreed to make the necessary arrangements in consultation with the Secretary and Chairman. Consideration was given to holding the next Annual General Meeting in April, 1971 at either GloucesterCityorpossiblyinlWiltshire.

Any other business

Various matters of general interest were discussed.

J. The fact that plastic containers were frequently being used for containing small quantities of petrol; the danger of this practice due to the tendency of certain plastics to weep, and the difficulty of obtaining suitable metal containers. 2. Mention was made of the large scale petroleum fire at Plymouth. It was suggested that in due course it might be possible for Mr. R. Billings, Chief Petroleum Officer of the City of Plymouth to give a short talk on the occurrence. 3. It was suggested that Mr. S. W. D. Harris be asked to outline the details of a court case which his authority had taken concerning a car fire and petroleum spirit.

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4. The question of ducting or concreting of underground wiring was discussed. Ducting was to be preferred, but would be dealt with later by Mr. J. A. Sharp, the Hon.

Electrical Adviser. 5. It was agreed that further consideration be given to a question concerning the need for petrol interceptors, the circumstances that warranted their provision, and the method of requiring their provision.

Address

Upon the resumption of the meeting after lunch, members were joined by guests from nearby authorities to hear Mr. J. A. Sharp, Senior Assistant Engineer, M.E.B. and the Hon. Electrical Adviser to the Association give an explanation and talk on the Association's recommendations for electrical requirements under the 1928 Act.

Mr. Sharp expressed the view that the Association had done a good job in preparing the Code and stressed that it would be amended by the Association in the light of experience. It should not be applied too rigidly in respect of existing filling stations but it certainly should insofar as new stations were concerned.

Mr. Sharp mentioned that there are now three area classifications for stations where a dangerous atmosphere was likely to be present and went on to define these areas as follows :Division 0-where a dangerous atmosphere would be continuously present (not likely to occur under the present conditions on a filling station). Division I-where a dangerous atmosphere is likely to occur at any time (within the pump enclosures and adjacent to Vent and Filling pipes). Division 2-where a dangerous atmosphere is only likely to occur under abnormal conditions.

In addition to the above, a 'safe area' is defined as being outside the limits prescribed in the Code of Practice.

Mr. Sharp went on to define the type of fittings and switches etc. available for use in Division 2 areas and made mention of mercury, micro-gap and magnetic types of switches. He further pointed out that bare tungsten lamps were not suitable for use within a Division 2 area as the glass envelopes of such lamps exceeded the temperature limits laid down in British Standard Code of Practice 1003. In dealing with kiosks, the Association had recommended that 9 in. from the floor would constitute a Division 2 area, and above 4 ft. would be considered a safe area except that lighting fittings should be of the enclosed type. The reasons for excluding socket outlets in a kiosk was explained. In the case of cash registers, these should be connected directly to the circuit through switched outlet boxes. The Association also recommended that heating of the kiosk should be by means of liquid filled radiators.

Mr. Sharp pointed out that the Home Office Code laid down recommendations for minimum levels of illumination and quoted the filling area as 1 lumen per sq. ft, the forecourts on unattended self-service and attended self-service being 10 Jumens per sq. ft.

Other points mentioned included the provision of isolating switches on self-service forecourts, the use of Division 2 wiring on loud speakers circuits where such wiring entered a Division 2 area, methods and types of wiring for pump installations and the use of double pole switches to control the circuits.

During the subsequent discussion Mr. Sharp made the following points :-

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Cables should be at least 18 in. deep or otherwise protected. In Division I areas, solid drawn conduit should be used, whilst in Division 2 areas, welded conduit is satisfactory. Referring to the Master Emergency Switch the

Home Office Code states that this should be inaccessible to the public, but the Association recommends that this should be readily visible to the public and within easy reach. Replying to a question on earthing ,Mr. Sharp made the point that the earthing circuit is the part of the installation which may not be called upon to function for 20 years or more, therefore, it is essential that it should remain intact for the life of the general wiring. It is necessary then that it should receive detailed attention when the installation is initially carried out. It was further pointed out that in all cases fuses must not be fitted in the neutral conductor.

Stress was laid on the importance of ensuring that test certificates were received only from approved electrical contractors. It was again reiterated that the Code applies to new stations and a question was raised as to how long we should put up with substandard installations.

Mr. Sharp listed the following important points:-

Earthing-double pole switching-correct fuse ratings and a good standard of workmanship.

In answer to a question on switches for use in Division 2 areas, it was stated that manufacturers were at present making switches of the following types:- Mercury Tube; Magnetic; Micro-gap.

During the course of discussion Mr. Sharp illustrated various aspects with excellent sketches which enabled the members to appreciate the various points under discussion. From the lively discussion which had ensued and the clarity of Mr. Sharp's answers there was no doubt that the session had been a most interesting and instructive one.

Vote of Thanks

At the conclusion of the meeting a vote of thanks to Mr. Sharp was expressing unanimously approved, with individual their appreciation. Thanks were also ~embers given . t? Mr Nesling and his Council for the arrangements and fac1hties0 which had been afforded to the Association for the holding of the meeting. Members were entertained with light refreshments, by Mr. Nesling for which the Chairman personally thanked him.

Northern

A meeting of the Branch was held at Norton Fire Station, Teesside on Monday, 29th June, 1970.

Present 15 representatives were present and these were welcomed by the Chairman, Mr. H. Johnson who extended a special welcome to Mr. H. Freer, of Saltburn who was attending for the first time.

Apologies

Apologies for absence were received from Newcastle City, Richmond Borough and Mr. Thompson of Field Service Mechanics.

Minutes of Previous Meeting

The Minutes of the previous meeting were accepted as a true record.

Matters Arising

(a) BRANCH RULES

The Honorary Secretary reported that draft Branch rules would be submitted to the Council at their next meeting for approval. Following this, the Branch would have the opportunity of studying these with the view to adopting them as binding on the Branch. He suggested that this might well be done at the Branch Annual General Meeting in 1971.

After a thorough discussion this suggestion was agreed to.

(b) STORAGE OF L.P.G.

The Chairman referred to the small bulk installations in country areas and stated that this problem now seemed to have reached the town and urban districts. In particular he made mention to a recent application to power Taxis with L.P.G. This application had been granted and he anticipated that the natural follow up would be an application to store L.P.G. within the premises of the proprietor. At the moment he was preparing recommendations in respect of storing L.G.P. for such use in his authority's area.

Election of Officers

The Honorary Secretary reminded the meeting that the election of officers had been deferred from their last meeting pending issue of Branch rules. As these could not now be adopted until next year he felt sure the meeting should regularise the position until the next Annual General Meeting.

The Chairman then asked for nominations for the post of Chairman and Secretary.

It was proposed by Mr. Newton seconded by Mr. Ranson that the present officers continue until the 1971 Annual General Meeting. There being no other nominations, Mr. Johnson was elected Chairman and Mr. Thacker elected Honorary Secretary for the current year.

Any other business

The Honorary Secretary gave a brief report on the previous meeting of the Council and mentioned the adoption of the new constitution and rules and also that approval had been given for an increase in Association fees.

Film on hazards of L.P .G.

There being no other business the meeting was then shown a very in1eresting film made in the United States of America on the hazards of !iquified Petroleum Gases.

Anglia

A meeting of the Branch was held at the Gas Terminal, Bacton, Norfolk on the 17th September 1970. Present

The meeting was opened by the Chairman, Mr. J. G. Clark who welcor:ied the 30 members present. . The Chairman drew the members attention to the publication of the Holroyd Report on the Fire Services, in particular that part which recommended that the safety provisions of the Petroleum Act be administered by the Fire Services. He stressed that it was not for members to criticise such recommendations but that it should be recorded that the present arrangements for administering this important legislation had been tried and proved.

The Chairman then went on to describe the day's programme which would be mainly taken up in visiting various terminals at the Gas Council's Bacton site.

Finally, the Chairman suggested that the branch might like to take up the offer of a venue at the B.P. Headquarters at Harlow, Essex for its Annual General Meeting in the spring, the date of which was left to be confirmed by himself and the Secretary. This was agreed by the meeting.

Apologies

The Secretary reported 10 apologies from members who were unable to attend.

Minutes

The Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the Branch, as previously reported, were accepted. There were no matters arising from these minutes.

Secretary's Report

The Secretary/Treasurer/Branch Representative reported that the finances of the Branch were in a reasonably healthy condition and that the Branch's 1970 capitation fees were yet to be received. The Secretary further reported on various aspects of Council meetings which he had attended since the last Branch Meeting. He drew the members attention to the fact that the Association was proposing to hold an Advanced School at York University in July, 1971 and also that arrangements were going ahead to hold further Schools at both York and Surrey Universities in 1971.

He further drew the attention of the Branch to the fact that Council had agreed to submit to all Branch Secretaries the Association's new Model Branch Rules. The Secretary suggested that these be made available to all members of this branch and that an item be placed on the agenda at the Annual General Meeting in 1971 in order that members could comment as they wished. This was agreed by the meeting.

The Secretary then informed members of a few of the controversial enquiries which had been received by Council including one which had to do with the Powers of Entry into unlicensed premises and another which involved the proposed British Standard for plastic containers to contain petroleum spirit.

Visit to Bacton Terminal

Members of the Branch then proceeded on the aITanged visit around the Bacton Terminal, commencing with a tour conducted by Mr. H. Smith, the Supply Terminal Manager for the Phillips/Arpet Group of the North Sea Gas Receiving Terminal. After an extremely interesting circuit, members questions and enquiries were adequately answered by Mr. Smith. After lunch, as guests of the Gas Council, members were taken on a further tour of the Gas Council's terminal by Mr. Walker, the Terminal Manager. All members were extremely interested in the well-planned and efficient installations and were considerably impressed by the speed with which the whole operation involving the supply of North Sea gas from the wellheads in the North Sea to the main trunk gas systems had been achieved.

Vote of Thanks

At tea, after the tour, a vote of thanks was proposed by Mr. J. Wookey, Vice-Chairman to both Mr. Walker and Mr. Smith.

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