3.4 Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER) Any employer who either provides equipment for use at work (including boiler systems) or has control over the way and manner in which equipment is used at work has a legal responsibility to comply with the relevant provisions of this regulation. An important, often overlooked, requirement under PUWER is that a maintenance logbook, when provided, must be kept up to date. Under PUWER, all employees required to use equipment at work must be trained to do so (Reg 9). This will therefore extend to the competence assessment and training of operators and managers of boilers, all ancillary plant, and any feed water treatment plant used for the boilers. Other parts of PUWER of relevance to boiler systems cover such topics as equipment suitability, maintenance, inspection, information & instructions, and control systems. This is not an exhaustive list. 3.5 The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (CDM) Although installing or replacing a steam boiler might not be a large enough project on its own to be notifiable under CDM, the principles of the regulations should still be followed, and if the steam boiler is part of a major installation the regulations will apply in full and must be considered at every stage of the project from conceptual design through installation to maintenance and ultimate demolition. Clients must appoint a Principal Designer and a Principal Contractor to ensure that the CDM Regulations are properly followed. 3.6 The Dangerous Substances & Explosive Atmospheres Regulations (DSEAR). A risk assessment under DSEAR must be undertaken. DSEAR applies to all boilers (not just gas fired) as incorrect combustion can lead to an explosive atmosphere in the boiler itself or indeed in a separate combustor or CHP engine exhaust. The owner of the system may assist the manufacturer by providing information from an assessment of the probability of the presence and the likely persistence of a potentially explosive atmosphere in the proposed working environment. Equipment supplied for use in a potentially explosive atmosphere must also satisfy the relevant requirements of the Equipment and Protective Systems Intended for Use in Potentially Explosive Atmospheres Regulations . 3.7 The Environmental Permitting Regulations All combustion plants rated between 1 MW and 50 MW nett rated thermal input will be required to comply with the Medium Combustion Plant (MCP) Directive which has been transposed into UK legislation through changes to The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales)(Amendment) Regulations, The Pollution Prevention and Control (Scotland) Amendment Regulations , and The Pollution Prevention and Control (Industrial Emissions) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) . This legislation requires the registration of all new combustion plants put into first use after 19 December 2018 and the registration of existing combustion plant before 01/01/2024 for plants individually 5 MW and above, and 01/01/2029 for plants rated from 1 MW to <5 MW. Where more than one new plant is on a site the new plants will be aggregated to a single MCP.
BG01 Guidance on the safe Operation of Steam Boilers Edition 2 – © 2019
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