Safety Procedures

The Department is committed to providing a safe environnment for all staff and students who work here.

This area of our website is intended to provide all the information that you need to operate safely in the department. While we make every effort to ensure that the individuals here are well informed, we do rely on everyone to keep safety at the forefront of their minds.

Please note that:

• All staff and students must attend induction sessions prior to commencing any laboratory or experimental work.
• All visitors and contractors must sign the vistors book from the General Office, located on level 4, room 443 (9351-2455).
• Contractors should contact Garry Towell upon arrival 0432 549 070
• Materials Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) information is available online. ChemAlert II

Please use the links below to navigate to the information that you need:

The Occupational and Safety Act 2000 (OHS Act) of New South Wales is aimed at protecting the health, safety and welfare of employees. The act sets requirements for health, safety and welfare which must be met at all places of work in NSW. The act covers employees, employers and self-employed people.

Employers must ensure a safe environment by:
a) maintaining places of work under their control in a safe condition with safe entrances and exits;
b) making arrangements for the safe use, handling, storage and transport of plant and substances;
c) improving and maintaining systems of work, working environments that are safe and without risk to health;
d) providing information, instruction, training, and supervision necessary to ensure the health and safety of employees;
e) providing adequate facilities for the welfare of employees.

Failure to comply with the NSW Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 or Occupational Health and Safety Regulation 2001carries heavy fines.

Note, Workcover may impose "Prohibition to Work" and "Improvement Notice" on the spot, these carry heavy fines if not adhered to.
For further information regarding workcover or legislation please visit www.workcover.nsw.gov.au

As a department, we must be proactive in promoting and ensuring a safe working environment for our staff, students and visitors. Refer to the Occupational Health and Safety Risk Management (ohsrm) section.

Its our obligation to keep University staff, students and visitors free from injury or disease

The safety staff for the School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering are as follows:

Safety Officer:

Chief Fire Warden and Deputy Safety Officer:

First Aid Officers:
,

Floor Wardens Level 2: Dean Chambers, Carlos Moreno
Floor Wardens Level 3: Andrew Harris, Marjorie Valix
Floor Wardens Level 4: Howard See, Katharyn Thomas

Gordon Yu Hoi Chiu Building Floor Wardens:
Level 3: Gabriella Nemeth
Level 4: Keiran Rogers
Laboratories: Norman Harrison

Safety Committee
All work in laboratories must be assessed by the Safety Committee before proceeding. The Committee meets each Wednesday afternoon to assess all applications and issue Certificates that must be displayed on laboratory doors. Work permit forms should be sent to Garry Towell by email or in his mailbox.

Useful Telephone Numbers:

Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering administration office: 9351 2455
Security: 9351 3333
Safety Officer: 0432 549 070
Deputy Safety Officer: 9351 7484
Fire, police, ambulance: 0 - 000

The University of Sydney Occupational Health and Safety Risk Management (OHSRM) program is design to provide a safe work environment for all staff and students by applying a risk control approach. The School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering is committed to implementing systems to achive this objective. The OHSRM program risk control strategy is design to;

1. 1. Identify hazards and hazardous jobs (risks)
2. 2. Assign priority for each risk
3. 3. Assess the risk(s) in order of priority
4. 4. Control the risk(s)
5. 5. Periodically evaluate OH&S risk management procedures

Consultation is the main component of this system. All interested parties are involved in the OHSRM proces. Supervisor and managers are required to consult with with thier staff regularly with reference to steps 1 to 4 above.

Staff are encourage to take ownership of their safety in their own work environment and the OHSRN system to address concerns. OHSRM forms are available for this purpose;

Part A is used for reporting issues or incidents
Part B is used for setting up an action plan to address problems.

An OHSRM Management Structure has been formulated whereby responsibility for public spaces in the Department of Chemical Engineering is allocated to staff members or "supervisors". Please note which room numbers have been assigned to which supervisor. If you work in a particular room, you should consult with the relevant supervisor about safety issues. If you have responsibility for any rooms, you should attend staff meetings and submit the relevant OHSRM form (Part B) for your areas of responsibility. Every supervisor should submit at least one completed Part B at each staff meeting (unless there are life threatening risks requiring more than one action). Please note that supervisors should consult staff under their supervision for hazard identification and assessment in their allocated areas of responsibility (Part A). Responsibility for individual offices lies with the occupants.

When assessing the risks in your work environment, you should consider what makes the job hazardous:

• The physical activity required?
• The work environment?
• The nature of the hazard itself?
• The individuals involved?

In the event of an emergency (fire, criminal act, major spill or leak of toxic materials, etc), please observe the following:

• Keep calm
• Tell someone about it: the Floor Wardens, fellow Workers, your Supervisor, others in the area
• Call the Security Emergency Centre (1 3333) in the first instance and then Police/Fire Brigade/Ambulance (0 000) only if Security is uncontactable.
• Be ready to describe where you are and what is wrong (fire, medical or criminal)
• Leave the building if the type of emergency warrants it, or if directed by Wardens/Security
• Go to your assembly point. Grass area between the Chiu building and the old School (sand stone building on Maze Cresent)

In the event of fire, or a major spill or leak of toxic materials, it will be necessary to evacuate the building. You must leave the building promptly if the alarm sounds continuously; alarm tests last no more than five seconds. Failure to evacuate promptly may endanger both yourself and others.

Unless directed otherwise by a warden, you should leave the building by walking clockwise around the corridor until you reach the closest exit or stairwell.

Wardens have been appointed for each floor and they check all rooms before leaving their assigned areas. If asked to evacuate the building, always assume that the alarm is real and that the person requesting evacuation is acting as a warden. You may be asked to assist in this duty; please listen carefully and act promptly. The process of clearing a floor is rapid and will not pose a danger to those carrying out the task.

Instructions for wardens are found in the Emergency Evacuation Procedure.

If the alarm sounds, never stand around waiting to see if someone is undertaking the role of warden - there may be times when appointed wardens are not at hand and you should take the responsibility yourself to ensure the rapid evacuation of the floor. This is especially true after hours.

It may be necessary to evacuate the building after-hours. Both front doors, the trap-door in the iron gate, and the small gate between Chemical Engineering and Chiu buildings can be opened from inside.

If evacuating after-hours, the responsibility for the evacuation process falls on the occupants at the time and they must check that all other occupants leave the building. All offices and rooms on each floor should be checked quickly – hammer on the door and shout if necessary. This process is much simplified if the occupants deliberately make themselves aware of the other persons in the building.

After evacuation, all personnel should assemble in the emergency evacuation assembly area which is the grassed area between the Old School and the Biochemistry Building, across Maze Crescent.