Letters to the Editor

business where there is a potentially explosive atmosphere should be made aware of the “Significant” Technical changes in the new document.

That the changes not only affect the inspector or those “Competent” persons actually carrying out the Inspection and Maintenance work, but also those persons supervising and ordering the work to take place so contractor and client alike.

So what are these “Significant” Technical changes?

1)Additional requirements for inspection and maintenance of electrical installations for combustible dust are included.

2)Knowledge, skills and competencies of “Responsible Persons”, “Technical

Persons with Executive Function”, and operatives are explained.

3)Equipment Protection Levels (EPLs) have been introduced and explained.

The main one is going to be point 2) where they have now clearly defined the competencies of those involved and the training deemed necessary.

The Health and Safety Executive will of course always seek to establish that all persons carrying out work are deemed “Competent” to do so.

I have listed below some of the main points that should be considered and I would encourage that a full copy of the standard is obtained from the British Standards Institute website at

4.2 Qualification of Personnel

The Inspection and Maintenance of installations shall only be carried out by experienced personnel, whose training has included instruction on the various types of protection and installation practices, the requirements of this standard, the relevant National regulations/ company rules applicable to the installation and on the general principles of area classification. Appropriate continuing education or training shall be undertaken by personnel on a regular basis. Evidence of the relevant training and experience claimed shall be available.

APEANew Members

Detailed below are new members that have recently joined the APEAduring October, November and December 2007.

October

William Blyth Norwest Holst Limited Astral House Imperial Way Watford Hertfordshire WD24 4WW

Gurdal Orak OPETPetrolculuk A.S. Bulgurulu MH. Sarigazi CD No. 47 Uskudar, Istanbul 34696 Turkey

Frederick Pitto Cepsa (Gibraltar) Ltd Europort, Building 7 - 2nd Floor PO Box 51, Gibraltar

Annex B

B.3 Competencies B.3.1 General

Competencies shall apply to each of the explosion protection techniques for which the person is involved. For example; it is possible for a person to be competent in the field of inspection and maintenance of Ex”i” equipment and not be fully competent in the inspection and maintenance of Ex”d” switchgear or Ex”e” motors. In such cases that person’s management shall define this in their documentation system.

B.4 Assessment

The competency of “Responsible “ persons, technical persons with executive function and operatives shall be verified and attributed, at intervals not exceeding five years on the basis of sufficient evidence that the person;

a)Has the necessary skills required for the scope of work.

b)Can act competently across the specified range of activities and can

c)Has the relevant knowledge understanding underpinning the competency.

In summary this new Standard clearly defines the roles of all those involved in Electrical Inspection and Maintenance in potentially explosive atmospheres and more importantly asks that the person is suitably trained for the work that they are to do and that this training is recorded and updated on a five year cycle and is suitable with National Training and Assessment Frameworks. The CompEx training scheme for example by JTL Ltd offers such a training scheme and can be contacted on www.compex.org.uk for a list of training establishments in the UK.

The industry has always had challenges laid down to us and over the next couple of years we all need to ensure that we are indeed employing and using suitably “Competent” persons as required by this standard.

Gareth Bourhill IEng, MIET,MEI, MFB, GCGI 1 Sheena Drive, Alexandria. G83 9PL

Sotirios Karakolidis Karakolidis 38 Anagenniseos Str Thessaloniki, GR54627 Greece

Alan Bennett Istobal UK Limited Unit 331C Rushock Trading Estate, Rushock Droitwich Worcestershire WR9 0NR

Rebecca Powell The Electrical Benchmark Limited 4 Amity Place Topsham Exeter Devon EX3 0JE

Paul Wootten West Supply Electrical 169 Soundwell Rd Soundwell Bristol BS16 4RP

APEAtel/fax 0845 603 5507

Basema Al-Mahroos Bapco P.O. Box 25555 Awali Bahrain

Leanne Cox CH Jones Ltd Premier Business Park Queen Street Walsall West Midlands WS2 9PB

Glenys Cooper CH Jones Ltd Premier Business Park Queen Street Walsall West Midlands WS2 9PB

Kevin Ellis Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue 58 St Johns Road Newport Isle of Wight PO30 1LT

Jason McMenamin BPOil Ltd Witan Gate House 500-600 Witan Gate Milton Keynes Bucks MK9 1ES

Steve Rowe P.O Box 561 Noordhoek Cape Town 7979 South Africa

Anthony Gallagher Hospital Lodge Stourport Road Kidderminster Worcestershire DY11 7BH

Mike Buss Isle of Man OFT Government Building Douglas Isle of Man IM1 1LE

Jim Wills Wills Gee Ltd 34 Market Square St Neots Cambridgeshire PE19 2AF

Martin Schofield SLR Consulting Westleigh House Wakefield Road Denby Dale Huddersfield HD8 8QJ

Brian Warshaw 13 La Platiere 71150 FONTAINES France

November

Tom Sterling 17 Pickhurst Green Hayes Bromley Kent BR27QT

Bo Sebæk-Larsen LD Handel & Miljø A/S A.F. Beyersvej 14 Vanløse Denmark DK 2720

Nick Evans Bristol City Council Trading Standards Service Floor 4, Brunel House, St George's Road Bristol BS1 5UY

Michael Hunt Shell UK Retail Operations Rourke House PO Box 403 Staines TW18 3ZB Bob Allen Secu-Tech GmbH 7 Winsbury Court Crownhill Plymouth Devon PL6 5JU

Kerry Jones GSS Training Limited 12 Ambassador Place Stockport Road Altrincham Cheshire WA15 8DB

Johan Psaila 11 Redentur Triq L-Isturnell Roza Luqa Hal- Farrug LQA3101 Malta

Jaume Lopez REPSOLYPF, S.A C/ Cerro del Castañar 72, 1ª planta 28034 Madrid Spain

Elana Gonzalez REPSOLYPF, S.A C/ Cerro del Castañar 72, 1ª planta 28034 Madrid Spain

Peter Callister Isle of Man OFTGovernment Building Lord Street Douglas Isle of Man IM1 1LE

Brian Hatfield BH Electrical Contractors Ltd Curtana Villa Taylors Lane Pilling Nr Preston PR3 6AB

David McGarry CSG UK plc Charter House Unit A9 Barton Industrial Estate, Faldo Road Barton Le Clay Bedfordshire MK45 4RP

Tony Doorly Suffolk County Council Trading Standards Service Endeavour House 8 Russell Road Ipswich Suffolk IP1 2BX

Michael McMahon Samac Construction Services Ltd SAMAC House Metro Centre, Bridge Road Orpington Kent BR5 2BJ Janet Knight Suffolk County Council Trading Standards Endeavour House 8 Russell Road Ipswich Suffolk IP1 2BX

December

Guy Marshlain Gilbarco Veeder-Root Valley Cottage Mill Hill Capel St Mary Suffolk IP9 2JE

Derek Thompson Go Bio Fuels Limited 177 Harrow Road London W2 6NB

Stephen Sanders Meridian Electrical (Eastern) Ltd 775 Southchurch Road Southend-on-Sea Essex SS1 2PP

Stephen Woodock Nuttall Yarwood & Partners Limited The Grove High Street, Dodworth Barnsley South Yorkshire S75 3RQ

Tibor Lévay ATLAS Innoglobe Ltd Magdolna str. 6. Budapest Hungary 1221 Hungary

Mike Chorlton Atkins Defence Asset Management Building F53 RAF Spadeadam Gilsland, Brampton Cumbria CA8 7AT

Killian Tallon Topaz Energy Ltd Topaz House Beech Hill Industrial Estate Clonskeagh Co Dublin DUBLIN 4 Ireland

Peter Robinson 84 The Parkway Canvey Island Essex SS80AE

Steven Lazenby CDMC (South Wales & West) Ltd Unit 12/19 Vale Business Park, Llandow Cowbridge Vale of Glamorgan CF71 7PF

UK, Evesham. Road closed as tanker freed

Dec 2007 - Abusy Evesham road was closed to traffic for around two hours as firemen fought to free a tanker laden with 35,000 litres of kerosene which became wedged in a narrow gateway.

Police sealed off Worcester Road between Evesham High Street and the A44 Pershore Road as fire fighters used cutting equipment to remove part of the tanker's bumper which had been torn away from the vehicle. The incident happened around 10pm as the tanker tried to reverse into a fuel depot close to the Tesco superstore on Worcester Road. As the driver pulled forward to try and free it, the bumper began to tear away. Fire fighters led by watch manager Toby Kempton were able to establish the tanks had not been ruptured before bringing in heavy cutting gear to remove part of the bumper as firefighters with hose reels stood by.

UK, Trading Standards take on explosive new role

Oct 2007 - Keeping Somerset’s residents safe from the potentially explosive risks posed by the sale and storage of petroleum is now part of the daily routine for Somerset County Council’s Trading Standards officers.

The team have taken over the role following the merger of Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Services. Responsibilities include visits to premises storing petrol to ensure that there are no leaks, providing advice and guidance, and checking plans and inspecting construction work when new sites are built or existing ones redeveloped.

Petroleum is a highly flammable liquid and gives off flammable vapour which, when mixed with air, can result in an explosion. Premises that store petroleum should be licensed and there are strict legal criteria that must be adhered to. Somerset County Council’s Trading Standards officers enforce this as part of their role to protect the community. For example, where a petrol station has closed down, it is important that a qualified contractor has made the storage tanks safe. If not, the tanks could be full of vapour whilst appearing empty, and any damage could result in an explosion.

Howard Burnett, Somerset County Council’s Trading Standard’s Manager, said: “Petroleum is very dangerous and may accumulate in tanks, drains and cavities, posing a significant risk. Somerset County Council’s Trading Standards officers are on hand to give advice and help licensed premises meet their legal obligations.”

Councillor Jim Mochnacz, PortfolioHolder for Community Safety at Somerset County Council, said: “When people are filling up their vehicles with petrol, understandably they probably do not lend much thought to the measures in place to keep them safe. I am pleased that Somerset County Council provides this important service to the community.”

UK, BPSells its last refinery in UK to PetroPlus

BPis to sell its last refinery in the UK. The disposal of Coryton, in Essex , for £714.6m (€1027m) comes just over a year after BPoffloaded its refinery at Grangemouth.

Close to the M25, the Coryton site is responsible for loading about 700 tankers a day to meet 22% of the UK’s fuel demand at petrol stations. The refinery also supplies Heathrow and Gatwick airports with jet fuel via direct pipelines.

The operation is being bought by Swiss firm Petroplus Holdings, which owns and operates three European refineries, including one on Teesside. BPand Petroplus have entered into a long-term supply agreement which will provide BP’s retail and other businesses with the products they need.

John Manzoni, chief executive of BP’s refining and marketing business, said: “BPis very much committed to the UK and does not need to own a refinery in the UK to offer its UK customers the best in fuel products.’’After completion of the sale expected to be complete by the summer of 2008 about 540 staff will transfer to Petroplus. Coryton began operations in 1953.

UK, Hertfordshire. Fury over oil blast pay out delay

Dec 2007 - A man who "lost everything" in the Buncefield disaster has attacked moves to reinstate parts of the oil depot before compensation has been paid out.

Ian Silverstein, 38, says he has been "through hell" since his Hertfordshire home was destroyed in the 2005 blast. Two years on Mr Silverstein still has not received any pay out from the oil company responsible for the depot. In a statement, HOSL, which owns Buncefield, said it was "progressing all claims as swiftly as possible". Planning applications have been submitted for works at the site near Hemel Hempstead. One application, to create a rest stop for truckers 100m from the depot, was rejected on safety grounds. But arguments continue over the fate of Mr Silverstein's five bedroomed home which now lies ruined having been burgled and looted more than 50 times.

The businessman said he had spent three years and more than £350,000 restoring High Grange, designed by Edwin Lutyens in 1911, set in 3 acres just 200 yards from the depot. Mr Silverstein said: "I lost everything in that explosion; my home, my possessions, my faith in the UK, my entrepreneurial spirit and on a regular basis, the will to carry on. Even after two years I haven't received a penny from the people responsible and I'm still affected on a daily basis by the events and trauma of the explosion on 11 December."

The explosion, which occurred after 300 tons of unleaded petrol leaked from a tank at the depot, sent a ceiling crashing down on Mr Silverstein and his girlfriend as they slept in their bed. Mr Silverstein needed stitches to his head and chest. Oil company Total has already reinstated the depot's underground pipelines to feed aviation fuel from an oil refinery in Humberside to Heathrow.

In a statement HOSL, a joint venture between oil companies Total and Chevron, said: "We have made significant progress overall, with agreement now having been reached to settle approximately 2,400 out of 3,700 formal claims received."

UK, BPrelaxes motorcycle helmet rules at petrol stations

BPhas announced it has relaxed rules for motorcyclists using petrol stations owned and operated by the firm, meaning you should now be able to fill your motorcycle with petrol without removing your crash helmet

The company has also suggested the petrol stations it doesn´t directly own should also relax the motorcycle helmet rule.

Gary Worrow, BP´s Retail UK health,