Risk Assessment and MOC

The JIG HSSE Management Standard includes 2 key elements that help to keep Aviation Fuel Handling Operations safe. These are Risk Assessment (Element 2) and Management of Change, often abbreviated to MOC, (Element 8).
The HSSE MS is intended as high level guidance to operators and contains the key elements that are expected to be inclued in their local HSSE Manauals.
Sites operating to JIG Standards and participating in the JIG Inspection Programme are required to meet the minimum expectations of the HSSE MS.
Compliance with the HSSE MS is verfiied by an external audit every 3 years.

Element 2. Risk Assessment

This section provides a framework for sites to conduct a structured assessment and management of risks that may occur to people, assets, the environment and the Operator’s reputation. The approach is to identify all hazards that may impact the operation and to put in place mitigating actions or systems to reduce the risk to as low as reasonably possible (ALARP).

Particular attention is paid to the Permit to Work process by which Operators select and inform contractors who may be undertaking work in high risk areas, such as:

• Entry into deep pits, tanks and other Hazardous confined spaces (should be avoided unless necessary for maintenance purposes, in which case it shall be controlled by a confined space entry work permit)
• Hot work – work of any type where heat is used or generated (e.g. by welding, flame cutting, grinding etc.) or may generate sparks or other sources of ignition
• Work at heights
• Electrical – work on electrical equipment / systems.
• Energy isolation e.g. electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pressure (LOTO)
• Excavation
• Cranes and lifting
• Opening process equipment

The JIG HSSE committee has recently developed some futher material to provide general guidance on how to identify risks and manage them. You can acess this giodance by clicking on the button below.

Element 8 : Management of change

It is a requirement for sites operating to JIG Standards to follow a Management of Change process every time there is a change in activity. There are many potential changes in daily activities, which if left un-noticed can lead to accidents or disruption to the activity. What appear to be minor changes can result in significant consequences; so the correct identification of change is a key aspect to any ongoing MOC process and policy.

Typical changes in fuel handling facilities include some of the following:

• Plant and facilities
• Equipment
• Hardware or software
• Processes
• Operating procedures
• Design and construction
• Maintenance procedures
• Composition or properties of materials
• Organisational structures and responsibilities
• Personnel training or competency requirements
• Legislative and regulatory requirements
• JIG Bulletins and JIG Standards
• Any changes initiated during emergency situations where a full MoC process was not possible. All emergency MoC should be reviewed, and either be transformed to temporary or permanent change depending on the situation as soon as the emergency situation gets back to normal.

Analysis of JIG Inspection Reports reveals that MOC is not propprly understood and sometimes incorrectly implemented on JIG Member sites. For this reason, the HSSE Committee has provided some further guidance on the expectations of the MOC process that can be accessed by clicking on the buttons below.